last hurrah for summer

Back to work today. We decided to take the day off yesterday, Monday. David was kind of feeling under the weather, and a day off from a hectic workweek was undoubtedly the antidote. We did the usual lazy day stuff- woke up at 11.30 am, cheese omelette for brunch, an HBO movie, marathon reruns of Sex and the City (for me!) and just lying around, consumed by the gloomy weather outside.

David got stung by a jellyfish at the beach last Saturday. He had an ugly welt on his right arm, and he said it was a little sore. And when he called in sick yesterday, the whole office was under the impression that he was “attacked by a huge sea serpent”. I couldn’t stop laughing when a friend told us about it last night. Apparently, some kook, for whatever reasons, wrote on the bulletin board that David got bitten by that sea serpent something. Hilarious!

The sand at the Sandy Point beach last Saturday somehow reminded me of cheap polvoron we loved as elementary-school kids. The kind that was golden-colored and very grainy. We finally made it to beach after a whole summer of postponing the trip. Everyone couldn’t get a free, sunny weekend for the beach. Either the other couple is busy, or the weather is not okay, or we had other things to do, etc. Last Saturday was perfect- bright sunshine and cool breeze. I got toasted, but not baked. Darko (our friend) wanted to go to Ocean City, but Janet, his wife was not too keen in driving 3 hours just to get there. So the nearest beach we could find was Sandy Point. Only 45 minutes away from home. The beach had a great view of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge.

Darko’s nephew Stefan, frolicked on the beach like a pro. Just two years ago, he was hysterical when his mom or uncle tried to dip his feet on the water or plop his feet on the sand. Last year, he would play on the water’s edge, but would scamper away when a wave comes to the shore. But this summer, he’s a beach dude. Isn’t it amazing to witness that kind of growth? Now he’s almost four, and he’s trying to master the art of interrupting adult conversations. So funny.

Another trip that has been postponed for the nth time was the Lake of the Woods day trip. The lady from work, Katuko, who never gets tired of treating us to lunches, dinner, etc., planned to take us to Lake of the Woods for brunch and house hunting. Same thing happened- busy schedules, gloomy day, rainy day, etc. Last week, the weather forecast for Sunday was perfect- sunny in high 90s. So despite delay, the trip was on. But Mother Nature can change her mind anytime she wants. Sunday came and it was low 60s, gloomy and drizzly.

Rain or shine, we went there anyway. We had brunch at the Clubhouse- waffles, mealoaves, potatoes, pastries, bacon, fruits, omelettes cooked for you by a bored-looking chef, and a whole lot of other things. I just thought that chicken marsala was kind of out of place. All in all, it was a nice brunch. And we had a great time.

House hunting was fun. Katuko’s agent got confused whether all of us were her children. And nobody bothered to explain. We just let her assume we were there to help “mom” choose a retirement house. Our unanimous favorite was a two-bedroom house with a large front yard, a cute little porch, a spacious kitchen, a beautiful deck at the back that looked out to the golf course, and a larger backyard. The whole house had turtle trinkets everywhere! Turtles on deck, on plant pots, on table accents, front yard trimmings. The house must be owned by a crazy turtle lady, hehe.

It’s gonna be September in ten days, and very soon, it will be Fall. Where have all our summer days gone? Summer felt like it’s only ten sunny days. Oh well, there will be more summers to come. And whatever happens, I’m always looking forward to warm, sunny, long summer days.

A little recycling goes a long way

Global warming and recycling are two of the most pressing and significant topics right now. And although I wouldn’t label myself a hardcore environmentalist/activist, I care about the environment and I do my best in performing my part in saving the environment.

In my own little way, I take an effort to recycle, and do much with less. The hubby and I abhor seeing heaps of advertising papers which clog our mailbox everyday. It is also sad to see those fancy, thick glossy papers used for cable and internet advertising in the mail, and of course, those useless junk mail we receive on a daily basis. Wasting too much paper!

Doing a bit of recycling is meaningful on my part. It may not be enough, but I can say that I’m not adding up to the already wasteful ways of doing things:

- We try to use less plastic bags as much as we can when do our grocery shopping, and I use those plastic bags for the trash. I had never used those regular trash bags.
- I use old newspapers in blotting out oil from the frying pan.
- I have a lot of extra hand towels in the kitchen so that I will use less paper towels; especially if I just want to dry my hands.
- I recycle plastic containers from the supermarket.
- I am an avid recycle-r of boxes, or gift boxes. I collect and save boxes early on for birthday and Christmas gift boxes.
- I recycle gift wraps! (So sue me for being so inot (stingy)!
- I don’t drink coffee anymore so no one can ever accuse me of squandering those Starbucks venti cups.
- I am not so gung-ho in using disposable paper plates for dinner at home (for easy clean-up purposes). I’d rather spend an extra half-hour doing the dishes.
- One requirement in shopping- wrinkle-free fabrics. Less ironing, less electricity used.
- I use the back of the paper for taking down notes.

I hope I can do more in the future…

How do you recycle?

these pimples give me a headache

I’ve been having breakouts especially in my forehead area for the past month, and no matter how clean and refreshed I make my face, they seem to keep popping up like a party crasher. A nightmare. I have those tiny, tiny ones which really annoy me and I believe, the more I think (and worry) about them, the more they appear. Sometimes I feel my forehead felt like sandpaper.

They appear for a week, and then my skin gets clear again. And then they reappear after three weeks. Oh, zit emergency! Stress? Wrong facial wash? Looking online for remedies, I found this:

Aspirin contains BHA (Beta hydroxy acid) which is a powerful defoliant and great at helping unclog pores and clear blemishes. It's recommended that you use the Aspirin mask / scrub once a week.

Step 1: Take 6 - 8 uncoated aspirin tablets in cup or bowl and crush them in to a powder.
Step 2: Add a few drops of warm/hot water, aloe vera gel or honey, now stir until you have a thick white paste. You may need to add more water to achieve the right consistency.
Step 3: Spread over your entire face, sit back and relax for 10-15 minutes. You'll know when 15 minutes is up as the mask is likely to start falling off your face.
Step 4: Wash off the mask with warm water and a gentle cleanser, as you wash gently massage, the grains will help exfoliate and reveal softer, glowing skin.
Step 5: Gently pat your face dry.

I always have a bottle of aspirin in my tote, and so I was thinking, hmmm, would this actually work? Would I try it? I’m kind of apprehensive about the defoliant thing. Sounds like a potent thing to me. If case turns worse, I don’t want potholes in my face! If a tiny pill of aspirin can zap out a terrible headache, it makes me wonder how will it do to my puny pimples.

Hindi lang pang-headache, pang-pimples pa!!

I’ll think about it.