"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly, what is essential is invisible to the eyes." - The Little Prince
Now, almost a decade later and being a "grown-up" myself, I feel that I can now see the other side of what the Little Prince was talking about. I am technically a grown-up after all. My age says so. But then, age is just a number. (pauses for a while)
Right.
A number.
I guess I really am a grown-up since I'm fussing about numbers.
According to the Little Prince, grown-ups like numbers.When you tell them about a new friend, they only ever ask about figures. They don't ask "What is he like?" "What games does he like best?" Instead, grown-ups ask "How old is he?" "How many siblings does he have?" "How much does his father make?" It is only then that they think they know him.
Thinking about it, I kinda agree. Being a grown-up and all, I won't deny that all I've been thinking about and most of what I do every single day are related to numbers.
A few days ago while having lunch with my friends and officemates, we suddenly started talking about banking and paying bills. We ended up labeling the act of "paying bills" as a "grown-up thing to do." Indeed, the Little Prince is right! Growing up entails having to pay the bills. It's all about numbers, numbers, and more numbers. Well, as a kid I thought grown-ups aren't aware of it, but I guess I was wrong. The truth is that grown-ups, including me, are very much aware. It's just that we don't have a choice. It has to be addressed whether we like it or not.
As a writer, there are a number of Websites that I have bookmarked and go to when I need new materials and sources for writing. I was browsing the science news on Science Daily when I saw this headline "More Than 300 New Species Discovered in the Philippines." I had to read twice to make sure that it was an international news. There was an overwhelming and satisfying feeling that came upon me while I read the article. It's not every day that scientific reports are made about the Philippines. Being a Filipino and a science major, I can say that I have an idea how significant this news is.
The Philippines is a beautiful country. I used to think that it is a paradise. If only we could look past the negativity and misshapen values, it is a beautiful place to live in.
Here are some of the newly discovered species.
Colorful seapen that emerges only at night
(Photo credit: Gary Williams, California Academy of Sciences)
New species of barnacle (Photo credit: Terry Gosliner,
California Academy of Sciences)
I'm not that big of a fan of YA (young adult) books. I read Harry Potter only after the first movie was about to be shown. As for Twilight, I never really read it, though I've watched it. So when I heard about the newest YA series that is scheduled to be turned into a movie, I wasn't that excited at all. I don't know how and why I started reading it.
It's called Mortal Instruments Series. It's written by Cassandra Clare. It's not all about vampires, but there are vampires in the series. There are no witches or wizards as well, but there are warlocks who can cast spells. The main characters are Shadowhunters.
So moving on, I started reading the first book about two weeks ago (City of Bones) on my way to and from work. At first I just read a few pages since it usually only takes me 20 to 30 minutes to go to and from work. One night last week, I couldn't sleep and found myself finishing the first book. I immediately moved on to read the second book (City of Ashes). I just found myself reading it in between work, school, and before going to sleep. Then came Friday; I wasn't able to go to work due to the typhoon. I finished the third book (City of Glass) and moved on to the fourth (City of Fallen Angels). By Saturday (that's two days ago) I'm done with all of them.
All I can say is, I feel so heartbroken! I can't begin to describe how painful it is to read the City of Fallen Angels. Yes, it's painful. That's why it took me two days before I went online to search for news regarding the other books. And I can say I feel more broken now that I had two days ago. Because the fifth book won't be out until next year (2012)! And the sixth book won't be out for another year after the release of the fifth (2013). Seriously??? How am I supposed to live with that?
This painful feeling just reminded me why I wasn't fond of reading YA books in the first place.
I've always been a solid Britney Spears fan ever since her ...Baby One More Time days up to the present Femme Fatale. Not to be biased or anything but she is a survivor. After everything she's been through, all the rebellious behaviors, the partying, the emotional and physical breakdowns, and all the controversies, she is still standing strong. I guess that's one of the issues that her new single "I Wanna Go" is addressing.
Britney's new MV opens in a press conference. It looks really fun. She looks great. Her body looks fit but I can't help thinking about Avril Lavigne. It's probably because of the hair. Britney has some pink highlights on and she was sporting some rocker chic outfit. Did they really sensor the "---- you!" part? It seems like it to me.
And I must admit, I missed Britney's toned body and abs. I understand it's all different now. She's now a mother and bit older. But at least she's trying, and I'm glad.
Britney then walks out and outside meets a fan. She signs a copy of her Femme Fatale album and grab the guys butt. It was just in time for that part of the song with the lyrics
Be a little inappropriate 'cause I know that everybody's thinking it when the light's out
Britney certainly got that right!
Then she continues to walk on the street doing "inappropriate" things, which include flashing in front of a traffic enforcer, a man in a car, and a kid with his father on the side walk. After avoiding getting arrested, she continues to walk on a sidewalk, with a lot of paparazzi following her around. All these happened right about that part with the following lyrics:
Lately people got me all tied up. There's a countdown waiting for me to erupt.
The lyrics are very fitting. Then it's like Britney just had enough. She climbed on top of a taxi and attacked all the paparazzi with a microphone. There was something else that caught my eyes, though. On one side of the street was a cinema and the sign says it's showing the movie "Crosroads 2."
Is it trying to say that Britney will make a part 2 of her Crossroads movie? I wonder.
I know I'm biased. I love Britney and I can't bring myself to say negative things about the music video. Just that it's not exactly something that will leave a lasting impression. There are a lot of messages in it though. All I can say is she did it again. She's had other songs in the past with the same theme. About how everybody wouldn't leave her alone and expect the worst from her. This song isn't any different from the others. But it's Britney. She can pretty much sing the same songs if she wants to.
Up until a week ago, I feel that I'm ready to go back to school as a graduate student. Hmm... Graduate student, I like the sound of that. It's been a nostalgic and exciting experience to be going back to school and undergoing the enrollment processes and all. I really can't begin to describe how amazing that felt.
So first day of school. I didn't know what to expect. I had no idea how it would be like to be in graduate school. It went fine, as far as I'm concerned. The usual getting to know the classmates and professor. I say a little bit something about myself and the others will do the same. So it's pretty much a conventional first day.
But nothing, and I mean nothing, prepared me for the second day of class. Well it's a different subject and a new professor. Only for me, the professor is not someone new. I've known this prof way back when I was still an undergraduate student, although I was never under his wing but I did know him. I've heard all sorts of things about him. Though, I'm not one to believe gossips and I don't really care about those at all. And in all fairness to him, I've always thought that he is one guy whose intelligence goes way beyond the ceilings or probably beyond the four floors of the grad school building. But the thing is, he knows. He's a genius badass and he knows it.
He's one of those who isn't afraid to say what he wants and thinks whenever, wherever. He mostly say different things about school, physics, and mostly about life in general.
On our first meeting with him he asked us why do we want to pursue a career in medical physics. Sure I can make up some reason why. I actually can think of a lot of reasons. But seriously now, why? For the life of me I still haven't made up my mind as for the exact personal reason why I am doing this.
I want to believe that I was born crafty. When I was a little girl, I used to cut paper dolls and design their clothes. There was a time when I asked my great grandmother to teach me how to do crochet. During my teens, I made a few crochet pieces for our house. I also used to "re-design" or "re-style" my clothes back then. Like those old jeans that I don't wear anymore; I used to cut them up and add embellishments to make them look a bit tattered and old. Don't judge me, those were the days when tattered jeans were the in fashion.
So I came from (as my mom used to say) ruining my clothes to re-styling them in order to make them look more updated, if that's even possible. But through it all I can't really say I've found that particular crafting style that I liked best. There was nothing that spiked my interest more than the rest. I liked crocheting but over the years I found that I only finish those small and quick projects. It kind of bored me to spend long hours making a particularly complicated piece. I tried working with beads and wires as well, but to no considerable success.
During the time when I've completely put all the crafting stuffs behind me, I accidentally came across a rather interesting craft material. And that is felt. I can't really describe what it did to me. It's like love at first sight. I've always had a thing for sewing (I used to watch my grandmother work with her old Singer sewing machine, which I love the sound of). Having done cross stitch and embroidery when I was young, I started to experiment with felt. I went online and searched for possible projects I can make with felt. And that's when my penchant for felting started.
I consider myself as a "seasoned" crafter. I do crafts usually only when I feel like it. I've done a couple felt projects and I wanted to share them here; hence, the label for felt crafts.
Just now, I had this idea of going through all my former blogs and blog posts. Until this moment, I have not realized how fun and interesting it is to go back and read everything I have previously written on my blogs. It's very nostalgic, may I say.
My blog on Tabulas.
Anyway, I also came to realize how long it has been since I created my first blog and blog post. I will not start the count from the very first one because I have already lost the account. So I want to start with my first blog on blogger. I didn't know much about blogging yet. So it's basically a personal diary. The second blog, which I kept for the longest time, was not on Blogger but on Tabulas. This is my blog on Tabulas.
The point of this post is to show my humble beginnings as a blogger. My first blog was started during my sophomore year in college. And I'm proud to be blogging still after 6 years.
I created a label specifically for this "Blogging: Then and Now". I would like to go back through my posts and make new posts based on them. I'd like to know if I still believe in the same principles, if I still think the same way, or if I still like the same things.
