Horoscope

In today's MX paper, my horoscope reads:

Fundamental shifts are happening in the realms of work, authority and career. They are appropriate shifts that are worth understanding. Look beyond the surface to the creative changes that are being brought to fruition in you.

How true this is! I'm loving my current work but sometimes it gets so boring since I don't have much to do. But last Monday, my colleague talked to me about some changes in the team and that our manager specifically told him to let me know that the changes will be good for me (why she didn't tell me herself, i do not know --- i took sickie last Friday so that might be the reason).

Though I'm not a believer of horoscopes, this one is just too real to ignore. :D I'm keeping my fingers crossed...

New Life (Lives)

BABY BOOM IN OZ!!!

All my married friends in Chatswood are having a baby - Ruthie is due to give birth anytime soon... then Noemie is on her 3rd month, and I just learned that Lanie too is preggy! I hope i'll be next, hahaha.

Back home, my elder sister had a miscarriage last year. It would have been her second baby after nine long years but sadly, we lost the little angel (gi wak-wak daw, i dunno). My younger sister also had a miscarriage last weekend. She has been so busy with her thesis in the last couple of weeks. She needed to do some revisions, had to travel to Cagayan de Oro and she's back at work too that her body just didn't cope with the stress level she's experiencing. Sad thing is, she didn't know she was pregnant! She bled on the bus on the way home and thought its her normal period but when tummy ache just didnt go away, they had to admit her to the hospital. After some tests, they said she lost the baby... sad, sad.

But its not all bad news. I also learned last weekend that my sister-in-law, who lives in Butuan, is also pregnant!!! Its her third time but the first two, she also lost it. The first one was due to a miscarriage on her first trimester, the second one, didn't develop well inside the tummy. They did everything they could, went through the pregnancy even if they knew from the ultrasound that the baby only have one arm and one leg and have a weak heart. But during the 8th month, the baby didn't survive. Our little Atasha was born dead and is now in heaven praying for all of us. My sis-in-law is still experiencing difficult pregnancy but she's coping well. They've been waiting for this baby for 5 years and we are all praying for the health of both the baby and the mommy. We all know our little Angels in heaven are looking after the life growing inside Jen's tummy and I just knew that this time around, it'll be perfect. But I still continue to pray for her everyday...

I hope im next in line... :D

Commuter Tale #1

Since I don't drive, I'm a slave of the public transport. I take the train or bus to work and sometimes take the ferry to go sightseeing. But unlike other people who whinge on how inefficient the transport system is, I, on the other hand, love my daily travel with Cityrail (that's the company who operates the public transport here in Sydney). I have my highs and lows, but I don't complain because I enjoyed my journey... and that's what makes it different.

I realized that there are so many stories worth telling about my journey so I decided to come up with my Commuter Tales. I will try to write about my train/bus travel experiences that i find exciting, and hopefully will be able to have enough material for my very own book, nyahahaha. Anyway, here goes the first one:


Commuter Tale 1: Being First Doesn't Mean You Always Get the Best Prize

26Feb 09, 4:45 pm train from Macquarie Park to Epping, then change from Epping for a service to Meadowbank.

(photos courtesy of CityRail)

At exactly 4:30, I packed my bag, said my goodbyes to my ofcmates and was rushing at the door. I need to be at Macquarie Station before 4:45 to catch my train. Its around 6 minutes walk from the office but I want to be there earlier, so I can claim my spot at the first carriage, right by the left side door. So the train came, and i sneakily went to my spot even though a lot of people were there before me (well, the transit officers were there but they got off the next station so I just moved a bit closer to the door).

I need to change train at Epping, which is about 7 minutes away. My connecting train leaves Epping at 4:54, giving me barely 2 minutes to run from the underground station up to the first level. There were three of us waiting for the door to open and as soon as it did, we sprinted (yes, literally sprinted from door to escalator - and to the next platform. I was about to give up the chase (since I heard the line "door closing") but the man behind me kept running, so I continued. As soon as I stepped on the train, i know I got on the wrong one. The two people inside the carriage commented that the three of us who made inside the train were like Olympians who got the gold, silver and bronze. And of course I got the gold medal! I just smiled, trying to catch my breath, and silently praying for the train to stop at the next station. But of course it didn't! It was an intercity train, stopping at the next major station 10 minutes later.

The train I was supposed to catch is due to arrive as soon as the other train left.

Oh well. I had to change train again, went the same way back and arrived at Meadowbank at 5:12pm. Had I stopped and looked at the timetable, I would have been home by 5:02,hahaha.

Lesson Learned: Magbasa ng train schedule! :D

Finally!!!

Finally, after a year of preparation, Agie and I got married.

The day went by pretty quickly, and before i knew it, we're back at the hotel as Mr. and Mrs. :-)

It rained during the day (our was an afternoon wedding) but by the time I arrived at the Monastery of the Transfiguration, the rain stopped!!! I was able to walk down the (extended) aisle as slowly as I possibly can. :D

As I look back, there were glitches during the day (guests not showing up, cake not to my liking, etc etc) but I still think ours was a very nice wedding. Our families and friends were there to witness the start of our new life together and that what matters most.

Thanks to our family and friends who helped us in preparation and for travelling miles away to be with us on that day. You all ROCKED!!!

Photos are uploaded at: http://gracymae.multiply.com/photos

Video can be found at: http://vimeo.com/2876468

Monastery of the Transfiguration

My Mom and Dad

outside the church

the compulsory jump shot!

we're married, yey!!!

more photos

our first gifts: a tea set from my ofc mate George and a wrapped gift all the way from New Zealand from Lawrence (my EQ is so high, i havent opened this gift yet, hehe)

the ring, the invite and the guestbook

the rings and invites

Im back!!!

Seven months after my last post, im back in the cyberworld. I've been busy with studies (i've passed my CPA first module, yahoo!), wedding preps (only a few items left unticked in my To Do list), lipat-bahay and so much more.

Anyway, in three weeks time we'll be in Manila na. Im excited to be home after almost two years here and I cant wait to see my family and friends. Most of all, im excited as the BIG Day is coming soon!!!

Updates on my preps:

Rings - Got it from Matus Jewellry pero masyadong malaki ang size ng ring - my fault :(
Invites - sent out to Manila and overseas friends. Simple yet elegant ang comment. Yahoo! hirap kaya pag overseas ang communications mo sa printer, buti na lang Printlane was so easy to talk to, bilis pa gumawa!
Guestbook - ordered it from Blurb.com. Im so proud of this kasi ako gumawa nito.
Dress - sana nasimulan na ni Benjie, hehe.
Shoes - Got it from Nine West which was 70% off the original price. Baka mapalitan ko pa sya when I go to Manila kasi baka di mag match sa gown ko. We'll buy Agie's shoes in Manila at sana naka sale ang Florsheim, hehe.
Give aways - So glad Papemelroti has an online shop, di na ako nahirapan sa logistics and they delivered it on time too.

I've paid the Caterer, church, photo and video (down payment). Kulang ko na lang is my make up, florist, cake and program. Kaya n to pag uwi namin!!!

I only got two photos to show. Im so tamad these days, dont even know how to use my new-ish camera, haaay. Di bale, sisipagin din ako soon.

Fiddling with the manual functions of the cam using the ring, invite and an oil tanker.

Front and back cover of the guestbook i ordered online at Blurb.com. The photo didnt do justice to the actual photobook!!!

Agie's in Melbourne (for three weeks) and I will be spending my weekend with him, can't wait!!! :D

Bye for now, hopefully, I can upload more wedding stuff soon.

Wedding Prep Updates

So, Agie and I got engaged last December 07, but because we're both in Oz, and the wedding is in Bukidnon, all the preps will be done online. I rely mostly on my cousin, family and friends to help me in booking suppliers, designs, concepts, ideas, etc etc. I would have wanted to be hands on in everything but I just can't do it, with the CPA exam coming up, i need to study more and surf the net less. =)

As of today, we have booked our photo/video, church and reception and have sent our Save the Date cards (our labour of love). Yes, this is a DIY project. I surfed the net for some designs. As we are having the wedding in the province, we opted to send the Save the Date cards to those in Manila and overseas so they can prepare/ plan in advance and give us heads up if they will be attending the wedding or not. Since this involves travelling for most of our guests, we came up with the idea of sending Boarding Pass STD (weird, STD, hahaha).

I surf the net for the lay-out, bought printer and stationery, some paints (a last minute addition since after we have printed the envelope, we realized the front cover is too-wedding-y that we need to "ërase" it with a paint") and started the project.

I did the lay-out and the printing while Agie did most of the cutting. We both help in the painting. It looks so amateurish but we are proud of what we did. I hope those who received them (we printed only 20 and sent it in the mail while the rest will be receiving electronic versions of it) will appreciate it even if it was not professionally made.

different cover designs... ewan ko if you can still see what we 'erased'

Monastery and the Map to Malaybalay

Boarding Pass 1

Boarding Pass 2

Boarding Pass 3

I'm in the middle of doing the lay-out for our give-aways, sana ma send na ni Bryan ang pix na hinihingi ko. :-)

yun lang, back to reading my cpa materials. :-)

My life in GOOGLE

I got this from Ellyn. All you have to do is google the answers to the following questions and choose any images you like as your answer. Pretty cool ey?





1. Name of a pet.

2. My nickname.

3. A bad habit of mine.

4. Where I live.

5. Where I like to travel.

6. My last name:

7. Fave cartoon character.

8. My name

9. My middle name

10. Age on my next bday.



11. My first job.

12. Favorite color.

13. My birthplace.

14. My favorite food (which I miss dearly!!!)
15. Love of my life.

A little too late post

Its been a while since my last post. I'm a busybee these past few days. I have to juggle work, school (yes, i enrolled in the CPA program and need to read a lot of materials for my exam) and wedding preps.

Im getting married!!! Yes, Agie did finally popped the question last Dec 28 and I, without hesitation, said Yes. La na nako sya gipalisod-lisod kaybasin mag change ang mind, hahaha. He was a bit nervous when he asked me to open the gift he had for me (on the pretense that I gave him lots of pressies for his bday and xmas that he felt he need to give me more!).

Ang sweet ni Agers. And he bought me a ring that he placed in the tea set I was eyeing at Victoria Basement. Since he bought the ring in an Aussie Jewelry shop, the size fits Aussie women too. And that being said, the ring is too large for my dainty finger. We had to have the ring resized. And since andun na kami, I asked Agie if we can exchange the ring na rin coz what he bought was more of an anniversary/wedding ring rather than an engagement ring. He reasoned he likes it more than a solitaire, hehe. Sabi ko na lang, similar ring na lang for our wedding ring and solitaire for my engagement ring, buti pumayag. :D

dinner at Sydney revolving resto where he popped the question

according to my ofc mates, the ring is so me! small and simple. i want kc something na pede gamitin everyday

We didnt tell anyone yet that we got engaged on that day until masabi namin sa parents namin. When my turn to tell my Mom, she was a little bit shocked pero my Dad was happy coz he thought di na ako mag aasawa,hehehe. After nag sink in na magpapakasal na ako, they are excited na to do the preps.

I wanted a simple wedding pero pinagtatawanan ako ni Agie coz ang dami ko na daw ka artehang nalalaman na hindi na daw simple ang gusto ko,hahahaha. Yan ang nagagawa ng too much surfing at reading emails from w@wie.

Mahirap ang preparation kasi overseas kami dalawa and once lang kami uuwi, 3 weeks before our wedding date. But, with the help of friends and family, we can pull this off.

Yun lang. im at loss for words... sa susunod dami pa ako i-k-kwento. sana di ma preempt ang invites ko,hehehe.

yun lang.

love you Agie and cheers to our new life together! :D

...now back to reading Module 4 of CPA 108, haaay buhay estudyante nga naman.

Christmas in Oz

My first Christmas in Oz was celebrated in style (Filipino Style that is).

At around 8pm, Cherry and I invited a few friends over for a Noche Buena at our new place in Chatswood. Everyone brought their own food--- Noemi, Jun and Gabbie brought yummy grilled chicken, Mike and Lanie brought grilled Tilapia (yum, yum, yum), Agie made sinuglaw (sinugba and kinilaw with pinakurat), Sally brought wine from Hunter Valley, I cooked kare kare and Cherry bought kutsinta from the Filipino store. Pinoy foods we were really craving...




At 12 midnight, we went to hear the misa de gallo and i was quiet surprised to see the church full-packed. I thought Aussies were not into traditional christmas celebration but i was wrong. i saw people of all ages and nationalities (well, i saw some Chinese, Koreans and a few Africans that flocked the Church). I guess being a Catholic school, the tradition of having a midnight mass is being taught too.

On Christmas Day, Agie and I went to the City and had our picture taken at some Christamassy sights ----

Sydney Town Hall adorned with lights

Different lighting of Sydney Town Hall
Hyde Park

We also went to Queen Victoria Building where a christmas tree was adorned with Swarovski crystals was on display; and Martin Place where the Christmas Tree was placed.

The day after, Dec 26, was a holiday in Australia. It was Boxing Day (just look it up, was supposed to be the day that people give gifts or something). And during boxing day, there's a huge sale going on in the City. Myers (a very big Department store) opened its doors at 6am, while the rival David Jones (these are high end shops like Shangrila, Rustans) opened theirs at 6:50 am... Normal shopping day in Australia is like shopping on a weekday in Rockwell, not too many people, no queue in the dressing room nor in the cashier. But come Boxing Day, its like Divisoria!!! Where did these people came from??? There was a queue just going inside the store and people are just everywhere. I had the below shot taken when I was on the elevator at Myers.

It was unbelievable!!! Just so we wont feel that we wasted our time, we just bought a nice China made bowl at 30% discount and some lotion that was sold at half the price. Even on sale, some itmes are still expensive compared to Manila prices. That being said, i cant wait to go home and shop!!!

So that's how I celebrated Christmas this year. Next year would be different, really different! And I cant wait for 2008 to come!!!

Happy New Year!

(nakakatamad mag post at magkwento)

Thanks 2007

2007 has been a good year for me --- no, make it a GREAT year for me. I have so much to be thankful for, so many bessings that came my way. :-)

Jan - migrated to Sydney. Had a safe flight. Was able to navigate the City without getting lost. Got a job.
Feb - moved to a new apt with cherry.
March - started with my work at GWF --- lovin it!!!
April - Easter Show, so many gift bags, yipee. :-)
May - My Birthday and my Bebe is finally here with me. Offered a permanent position at GWF.
June - Got my grade in Tax --- Distinction.
July - Snowy Mountains (dream come true na makahawak ng snow? hehe)
August - generally a good month, no major drama (short of saying I cant remember what I did this month, hehehe).
Sep - went Canberra with Lanie, Mike and Agie
Oct - Got my CPAA positive assessment for Tax, Law and Finance.
Nov - Transferred to Central Accounting. ;-)
Dec - moved to a new unit. Celebrated Xmas with friends.

I'm wishing that 2008 will still be a good year for me. :-)


Tom, we'll be having Xmas dinner with Lanie, Mike, Noemi, Jun, Gabbie and Sally. This is our noche-buena Aussie version. We'll go to mass at 12 midnight too!!!

taken last Friday, 19 Oct 07

this was at Circular Quay. Si Agie parang wala sa sarili habang todo pose ako, hehehe.

ang taba taba ko na!!! look at my bulging tummy, hahahaha. dapat di na ako kain ng rice pero ang tanong, kaya ko kaya? ;-)

Pinoy Food

I went to the Filipino shop (aptly called Manila Sari Sari Store) in Chatswood last week to see if they have red chippy. I have been craving this ultimate comfort-food (for me that is) for some time now and it's always out of stock. Well, it must have been my lucky day coz not only did I get to buy my red chippy, I also got ----



Pinakurat!!! - who would have thought this vinegar would make its way here in Oz. Highway robbery nga lang ang price at $6.00 pero care ko, binili ko na dahil masarap etong sawasawan.

Manggang hilaw! yum! this was not from the Filo store but rather sa suking vegetable stall namin sa Chatswood. This is proudly Australian produce (ayaw nila mag export) and was labelled "cooking mango". Cooking daw? hehehe. Kinain ko na at naglalaway na ako.

And of course, the reason why I went to the store --- my red chippy (and vinegar on the side). Ang sarap... kaya di ko pa masyado na mi-miss ang Pinas kasi dami Filipino food dito.

At ang iba ko pang nabili sa store: Mama Sita Kare Kare mix (yep, nag kare kare kami last Saturday), Menudo mix, Knorr Toyomansi, Ding dong atbp...

I love food and I love to eat (kaya tumataba na din ako, haaay). :-)

Spring has Sprung (but Summer is already making its presence felt)

Flowers are everywhere (in Canberra, at least). Our eyes feasted on Tulips of different colors when we visited Floriade 2007. See more at http://www.gracymae.multiply.com/.

On another note, Summer is making its presence felt here in Sydney. Bush fires are everywhere, temperature of 32 degrees was recorded today, a very rare occurrence in spring (Climate change na ba eto???) and FLIES (as in langaw) are everywhere na din! Gosh, pano na lang kaya sa Perth? hehe.

May exam ako next next week, ayaw ko na mag aral, gusto ko nalang mag internet lagi. :-)

Tree along Epping Road

In my daily travel from Chatswood to North Ryde aboard the 545 bus, I always look forward to the tree along Epping Road. It is devoid of leaves (maybe because its winter, pero spring has sprung na and the other trees are starting to show life pero ang isang to mukhang late bloomer) --- i just find it oh so beautiful, specially when the sky is blue. Every time the bus stops in front of the tree, I often wish I brought my cam with me so I can take a really good picture of it.

Today, when the traffic stalled our bus on the same spot, I got my mobile phone and took some snapshots of the tree and the blue sky. Not so good but good enough for a mobile phone pix though. Panira lang yung wires sa taas. Oh well, just want to share what I saw today. :-)

Im back

After more than three months of hibernation, I am back in the world of blogging.

I have so much to blog about but don't have the patience to, hehehe. Agers is now finally here and I am spending almost all of my free time with him, just hanging around and exploring all of Sydney.

Would have wanted to do a more meaningful blog entry but too lazy to do it... Soon, when I am done with my studies (yes, I enrolled again and hopefully, will pass this one too with flying colors).

Here's my pix with Agers during the visit of USS Kitty Hawk in Sydney Harbour.

So, what's keeping me busy these days?

* school (i am attending an online course, cheaper and saves me time to and from school)

* puzzle ( i finished a 72 x 48.5 cm, 1000 pcs puzzle all by myself (Agers was there to help me mount it though). Will post the finish product son. I have 4 more puzzles to complete, hehehe.

* learning how to use my new camera (haven't been using it and sayang naman ang binayad ko dun).

* Anticipating Canberra trip with Lanie, Mike and Agie - can't wait for some good photos. :-)

* Cooking filo food - Internet is my best friend! Nakagawa ako ng beef tapa na super sarap. Can't wait to do it again!

Yun lang.

Sana makapag update ako dito palagi. I miss blogging pala, hehe.

officially a credit officer

I am now officially a member of George Weston Groups.

I was offered the chance to be part of the group two weeks ago and I have made my decision then and there to accept the offer, but of course with the right compensation package.

My Agent is very interested in knowing if I got the offer and if I accepted it. He practically called me everyday since Wednesday to check if I got my offer, so when I finally got it, I called him. My guess is he is not too happy about it since he'll lose his commission from my hourly rate for the next six months, my forecasted length of temporary assignment, hahahaha. But of course, he will receive a one-time fee from George Weston for placing me there. Being an Agent is quiet a lucrative job, huh.

So, what does it mean to be a permanent employee?:
1. I have leave credits --- 10 days SL, 20 days VL (hmmm, I need to schedule my vacations)
2. I am now paid during holidays, yehey!!!
3. I can participate in performance bonus ;-)
4. I can go to the office anytime from 8am to 6pm, but only required to stay for 7.5 hours.
5. I have free bread every single day!!!

So, my official start date is 14th of May 2007, which, incidentally, is my birthday. And, on my first day, I will take my first day of leave,hahahahahaha. I told my Manager that I need to take the day off and she is okay with me "borrowing"from leave credits,hehehe. Kapal..hehehe.


And since my bday is nearing, I got myself a birthday present:

Fuji FinePix S6500fd

My next target: to be a good photographer. Time to use the photography book again, that is if the Post Office will finally deliver my package to me. :-)