Long Distance Relationships

What I'm about to write next is extremely biased, so please, if you're reading this and do not agree with my views, please live and let live, as I do not see myself changing my opinions anytime soon and have no plans of getting into a debate of any kind.

I simply do not want a long distance relationship. I'm not saying with finality that long distance relationships do not work, but from what I gather, this is what I strongly believe in.

The thing is, whether we like it or not, people change. They change because of their peers, the environment, their experiences, their choices, and a whole lot of other reasons. And being apart from someone for a long time, not going through the changes with him/her, changes the relationship as well. For me, the essence of having a relationship with a person is enduring the same challenges, encouraging each other, empathizing and sympathizing with each other. My problem will be his problem, and his problem, mine, too. I do not mean that we have to literally go through the same thing, but that we share the experience. Being there for each other through the ups and downs is not at all the same as being a supportive audience. Would you want your loved one to come home very different from the one you knew? Of course not. The little things matter. These little things accumulate into big character changes.

Also, nothing beats being able to see your partner after a long day for a hug, a kiss, and/or an occasional lunch or dinner. It's what relieves you of your stress, makes you forget your office problems, lightens the burden of whatever made you suffer during the day or week. And who would not want a comforting embrace after petty misunderstandings, someone to wipe your tears off when things get to be too much, a listening ear, who will never judge you?

Another joy is being able to try and enjoy new things together. Not just once or twice or thrice a year, but everyday. The pleasure of exploring even the littlest new things with the most special person in your life is priceless and incomparable to anything else. 

Gastronomic exploration. Felix @ Greenbelt. 01.22.14

I don't want to be too busy preparing (to the point of compromising happiness) for my future that my present ends up to be one gigantic sacrifice. So, why would I trade that for a job or for money?

Mighty Bond Mishaps

Simple Joy #10: Laughing at Mistakes

Whatever you do, do not hand me a tube of super glue that sticks like crazy in less than 5 seconds. I've lost count on the accidents that I've had with them. Apparently, when it comes to sticking things, I lose all logic and common sense. 

Anyway, since it feels real good to laugh, I'm telling you about two of them here.

Once upon a time, Marc & I were out having dinner with friends. Halfway through the dinner, my shoes felt heavy like something was dragging it down. I was sitting at this point, so the damage was not that apparent. After a few minutes, I had to get up and go to the bathroom, and that's when I noticed the soles were flapping around like crazy. Yes, soles! Both feet! Somehow, both of them have been dislodged up to half the length of each shoe. I then practiced dragging my feet to see if they were still walkable. They were, but there were no guarantees on how long they'd stay half-functioning, or on how they'd perform when I came face to face with stairs or sidewalks. Since everyone agreed to get coffee after dinner, Marc & I decided to either buy cheap slippers or get a tube of Mighty Bond. The slippers weren't easy to find, so 10 minutes later, we found ourselves fumbling with a shoe each, struggling in the dimness of the pickup's light, in an attempt to fix the darned things. Marc's came out ok. Mine on the other hand was another story. After less than 5 minutes, I held up my shoe smiling, proud of myself for fixing it, unaware of the quick drying glue dripping on my left arm. I had two, 3-inch long drips, before I realized I was making a mess. In an effort to fix the new accident I've created, I got glue on my fingers, and on Marc. I even got some on his watch! Go figure how that happened. At this point, I'm just really really blessed, God gave me someone who laughed with me through all this and he did not even get mad that I ruined his watch. I spent the rest of the night making kutkot on my arms and fingers while having coffee... Marc smiling at me knowingly.

Next story. Today, my 100-peso sandals started to fall apart. It wasn't as crazy as what happened to my heels, but it was also a sole problem. This time, it was on the right one only and it started to flap from the back. I got a tube of Bulldog Superglue that says it's specifically for shoes. I immediately got to work, forgetting my previous mishaps. As usual, I over squeezed and put in a lot more glue than I should've. The sandal started to drip on my office table. In an effort to minimize damage, I put the sandal down on the floor, onto some tissues. I wore the sandal and stepped on it so the soles stick together properly. After 30 seconds, the footwear was now stuck on the floor. I did not realize the glue had seeped through the tissue and stuck everything to the floor. I had to pry them off, trying real hard not to laugh at my stupidity. I then looked up from the tiles and what do I see next? My phone... on the table... where the previous drips were! True enough, my phone was another thing I had to pry off another surface.

I had nothing else left to do but laugh at my mistakes... and it felt really good to laugh. Praise God for these simple joys!

New Year, New Goals

Happy new year, everyone! I had a very nice family thing this year. We spent December 28 to January 1 at Fontana Leisure Parks & Casino (No, this is not a sponsored post), bonding over food, board games, food, movie marathons, food, swimming, and more food. It's actually a good place to rest, relax, and enjoy each other's company. Marc spent the new year with us, which made it a lot more special.

Before I get into my new goals for 2014, here's a recap of my 2013. The recap's more for my benefit than anyone else's.
1. Blog more often, at least 3 entries a month. 
     - November and October kinda failed, but I hey, the 7 entries for December made up for them.
2. Create and keep more memories. This means adventures, travel, and pictures, pictures, pictures! 
     - I have accumulated pictures and memories. I just need to set time and effort to have them documented in scrapbook form.
3. Run regularly at least once a week. 
     - Total failure.
4. Cook more. 
     - Since I was not able to define "more", I guess I'm comparing this to how I did on the previous year. This one's a yes, but only just.
5. Go to a beach at least once. 
     - Yup, sadly Boracay's not what it used to be.
6. Climb a mountain at least once. 
     - Done Tarak. Yey.
7. Ride a bike. 
     - I did, but not regularly.
8. Ice skate. 
     - Not this year. T_T
9. Attend Sunday service regularly.
     - Better than 2012, but still not on an acceptable level.
10. Be more faithful with my quiet times. 
     - Same as 9.

So here are my new goals for the year:
1. Pray more often. Particularly for the following:
     a. For Christ to change and mold my heart for a less horrible, angry, and bitter me.
          (Especially toward my family)
     b. For spiritual growth
     c. For the Lord to prepare and ready my character and whole being in becoming
          a good Christian wife and mother.
     d. For the Christian life/walk of my loved ones, especially Marc's.
     e. For a ministry
2. Attend Sunday service and have quiet quality times regularly.
3. Lead a more healthy life, meaning:
     a. Eating healthy
     b. Exercising regularly, or at least as much as I can

Happy 2014!