Housekeeping!

Hi, I'm here, dusting off the blog and making sure the cobwebs aren't too thick yet.  Gosh, this blog is so old that I feel like I'm visiting from the future.  

"Hey, it's me, I'm from 2021 and believe it or not, it will be 2022 in less than two months! A lot of things have happened but that's not what I'm here for.  I sort of miss blogging since microblogging on social media just doesn't cut it.  I can't begin to tell you how much they have killed my vibe.  But there are no regrets, I've rolled along with the changes."

It just always feels good to visit the "childhood home", methinks.

I might not use this platform as much anymore because I associate this with bad memories of people who back in the day have wanted to use some blog posts against my character when in fact they were organic and truthful rants about how they have badly treated me in the first place.  It still boggles my mind how easy some people slide into the victim status totally unaware that they are the ones who have initiated all the negativity to begin with.  

But I know better now.  I have grown so much, I have learned how not to react to provocations especially when I know that I am on the side of truth. 

“You own everything that happened to you. Tell your stories. If people wanted you to write warmly about them, they should have behaved better.”

Or, just don't care anymore.  I have long decided to transcend, bury the skeletons, and move on.  If they have not moved on and still talk about it, then it's their souls' suffering, not mine.

So now...

Moving forward, I am just realizing as I write this how freeing it is to write in a non-socmed blog knowing that not everyone in your social media platform like Facebook or Instagram can read what you have to say!  It takes the self-consciousness away and it makes way for nothing but truth, sincerity, boldness, and wildfire, to come out.  I think this feeling goes with the territory of being a closet-introvert, if there is such a thing.

--

I still have so much to share but I think the time is up for now.  I might drop by again to go deeper about what have transpired in the past ten years.  Maybe, maybe not.

Just in case,  try HEART OF KLAR, I might be there more often from now on just because starting fresh just gives me all the good feels.

Til next time! It was a pleasure getting back in touch!

Work in Progress

*Paleo lifestyle.  CHECK. 

*Gymstick workout by 10:00 pm. CHECK 

*Bed/TV off/Lights out by 10:30 pm. CHECK.

*Sleep by 10:30 pm.  GETTING THERE.  WORKING ON IT.

*No electronics/social media/internet by 10:30 pm. CHECK. 

*6:00 am morning yoga/core rhythm dance. WORKING ON IT. 

*Hoop Dance/Hoop Yoga/Archery weekends. CHECK. 

*Art Show projects.  WORKING ON IT. 

Work in progress.  I am.  We are.

We all are.

Moon Dancer

I just made a draft yesterday for a painting in my art journal.  And it’s about a fairy dancing on the moon.  I call it my moon dancer (I have been feeling really down lately…with my heart hanging so low that I accidentally kick it as I go.

 

PMS, plus a co-worker who’s always calling in sick I that I have to do her job when I have set my mind at finishing my own, plus lack of time to paint at home…and a whole lot more issues I will tell you next time.

 

Here is the text that I composed to go with the art.

 

Moon Dancer 

 

You don’t know the heartaches,

and the secrets that she keeps.

 

And no, it’s not what you think.

 

Her heart as fragile as a dream.

She keeps on smiling.

And dancing, and dancing.

All day and all evening.

 

Even while the moon sleeps.

 

~clarissepastormedina 04-17-13

Good Point about Stress

I received this on my email today.  Just wanted to share with you guys.

 

A young lady confidently walked around the room while leading and explaining stress management to an audience with a raised glass of water. Everyone knew she was going to ask the ultimate question, 'half empty or half full?'... She fooled them all .... "How heavy is this glass of water?" she inquired with a smile.
Answers called out ranged from 8 oz. To 20 oz.

She replied , "The absolute weight doesn't matter. It depends on how long I hold it.
If I hold it for a minute, that's not a problem. If I hold it for an hour, I'll have an ache in my right arm.
If I hold it for a day, you'll have to call an ambulance. In each case it's the same weight, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes." She continued, "and that's the way it is with stress. If we carry our burdens all the time, sooner or later, as the burden becomes increasingly heavy, we won't be able to carry on."

"As with the glass of water, you have to put it down for a while and rest before holding it again. When we're refreshed, we can carry on with the burden - holding stress longer and better each time practiced.
So, as early in the evening as you can, put all your burdens down. Don't carry them through the evening and into the night... Pick them up tomorrow.

1 * Accept the fact that some days you're the pigeon, and some days you're the statue!

2 * Always keep your words soft and sweet, just in case you have to eat them.

3 * Always read stuff that will make you look good if you die in the middle of it.

4 * Drive carefully... It's not only cars that can be recalled by their Maker.

5 * If you can't be kind, at least have the decency to be vague.

6 * If you lend someone $20 and never see that person again, it was probably worth it.

7 * It may be that your sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others.

8 * Never buy a car you can't push.

9 * Never put both feet in your mouth at the same time, because then you won't have a leg to stand on.

10 * Nobody cares if you can't dance well. Just get up and dance.

11 * Since it's the early worm that gets eaten by the bird, sleep late.

12 * The second mouse gets the cheese.

13 * When everything's coming your way, you're in the wrong lane.

14 * Birthdays are good for you. The more you have, the longer you live.

16 * Some mistakes are too much fun to make only once.

17 * We could learn a lot from crayons. Some are sharp, some are pretty and some are dull. Some have weird names and all are different colors, but they all have to live in the same box.

18 * A truly happy person is one who can enjoy the scenery on a detour.

19 * Have an awesome day and know that someone has thought about you today.

AND MOST IMPORTANTLY

20 *Save the earth..... It's the only planet with chocolate!*  OR WINE, I had to add that one, I know there are a few who agree!  :)

 

~~~ Starting Over ~~~

My New Year's Eve Brunch

My pre-New Year brunch this morning, a synchronized celebration with New Year's eve, Philippine time. A cup of Tsokolate-eh (thick chocolate 

made of Batangas tablea balls) with pinipig and a plateful of leftover caldereta, scrambled eggs, potato salad and rice. This is a spread of post-holiday comfort food I grew up having. We really grow more sentimental and nostalgic as we get older, especially if we are far away from the land that our hearts first called "HOME".

Reality Check. Perfect Timing.

"The great Sufi poet and philosopher Rumi once advised his students to write down the three things they most wanted in life. If any item on the list clashes with any other item, Rumi warned, you are destined for unhappiness. Better to live a life of single-pointed focus, he taught. But what about the benefits of living harmoniously among extremes? What if you could somehow create an expansive enough life that you could synchronize seemingly incongruous opposites into a worldview that excludes nothing?" — Elizabeth Gilbert

...

Dear Me,

 

TGIF! Well, of course, my co-worker called in sick for the 60 millionth time this year and now my planned work agenda for the day was thrown off again (careening wildly off its axis if you ask me!) because I have to do her morning work on top of mine…and for the rest of the day I will be clawing for little windows to catch up on my own work. 

 

*Sigh*, we’ll get by! 

 

Love,

C

45 lessons

Written by a 90 year old

This is something we should all read at least once a week!!!!! Make sure you read to the end!!!!!!

Written by Regina Brett, 90 years old, of the Plain Dealer, Cleveland , Ohio.

 

"To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me. It is the most requested column I've ever written.

My odometer rolled over to 90 in August, so here is the column once more:

1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.

2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.

3. Life is too short – enjoy it.

4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and family will.

5. Pay off your credit cards every month.

6. You don't have to win every argument. Stay true to yourself.

7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.

8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.

9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.

10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.

11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.

12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.

13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.

15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye But don't worry; God never blinks.

16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.

17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful. Clutter weighs you down in many ways.

18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.

19. It's never too late to be happy. But it’s all up to you and no one else.

20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.

21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.

22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.

23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.

24. The most important sex organ is the brain.

25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.

26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words
'In five years, will this matter?'

27. Always choose life.

28. Forgive but don’t forget.

29. What other people think of you is none of your business.

30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.

31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

32. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

33. Believe in miracles.

34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.

35. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.

36. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young.

37. Your children get only one childhood.

38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.

39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.

40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.

41. Envy is a waste of time. Accept what you already have not what you need.

42. The best is yet to come...

43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

44. Yield.

45. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift."

Getting my Ombre on!!!

Been thinking about this for weeks. Finally had the time!!! Whew!

My Balisong

Workie Workie

Things are getting mellow at work.  I’m glad.

But I’m still backlogged because of so much work the past week.

 

Today I was really optimistic and hoping to catch up but my co-worker called in sick again.

And I had to do her morning job. 

 

Like I always can’t do my own job because I’m doing someone else’s.

 

I’m back to SQUARE [NEGATIVE] ONE.

 

Annoying, isn’t it?

Our Work

Our work has gone from BUSY to CRAZY to…..PHYSICALLY IMPOSSIBLE!

Very Tired

I still have a lot of work and maybe if I push myself further, put one foot in front of the other, one at a time, maybe I will be able to accomplish everything even if I am very very very tired. It’s been such a rough and exhausting week at work (very busy + shorthanded = BAD). I actually found it hard to settle down and sleep the past few nights Yes, I pretty much passed the “tired” stage, and would just end up still too wired and trapped and drowning in a pool of adrenaline until midnight.  Last night I picked up a call at home on my housephone and answered automatically with my work telephone greeting script.  Now that’s a different level of tired for me.  I can’t wait to rest this weekend.  I’m actually excited to go back to work on Monday and finish my backlogs and have a fresh new start (because that is what’s proper and that’s what will make me function right again) but I really just need some rest ASAP. I feel so burned out that if someone taps me on my shoulder, I might break down and bawl. I’m gonna start curling under my desk and rock back and forth.  Seriously.

 

Me time. Big time.

Why am I always called to do SuperHuman duties when in fact I do not possess any SuperPowers?

 

For the record, this is all making me SuperExhausted…

 

Burning out.  Big time.

 

I hope I get over this July hump.  Oh August, I hope that you’ll be kinder to me.  But this is what I always say don’t I?  Some months, I pass with flying colors, some months I barely make it through without dropping a ball.  Expertly like a camel through a needle’s eye. Whew!

 

Most months I can’t wait to hop on to the next. But the same thing happens again.  Over and over.  The cycle never ends.    

 

I really need to be selfish once in a while.

 

I really need some ME time. BIG TIME.

Birthday Letter to a Dear Friend

Dear Ali,

 

I guess this letter is sort of my long overdue response to your birthday message for me last December.  Time flies so fast and you know how things have a tendency to fall off the cracks in our busy lives.  I have always wanted to write back anyway.

 

I want to make this short because I know you’re busy too so…just three things:

 

1. Happy Birthday.  If you noticed, I posted “Paggunita – it’s that time of the year”.  Because it is, it’s your special day and it’s a Remembering Ali day for me, and all the good times we’ve shared and all the good things we’ve done together. Actually, pinauso ko lang yan today.  Haha, but rest assured in your future birthdays, I will also think and do things in your honor.  Nox, hehe.

 

2. But yes, you are right when you said in your message last December that you’ve already forgotten most of our memories together (details but not the essence).  That honesty is something I appreciate (because that means we’re really still friends) and it will not offend me because yes, I know and understand and totally get what you mean.  Because I have also forgotten!!!!!!!!!!!!! (snippets will come in and out once in a while, and it will make me smile, like the other day Aldred and I were driving around desperately looking for somewhere to eat and I almost blurted out “Tapa King” – that being a random slip from a random memory of my Philippine life and routine, and then subsequently remembering when you and I drove all around Manila to find dinner away from my house and we ended up in Tapa King again, which was only a few blocks down).  Anyway, I know that me admitting that I’ve also forgotten most of it is not a bad thing for you either.  Because, yes, though it all seems like a blurry old movie now, we both know that they were really good times, and great honest-to-goodness friendship and it’s a happy place in our hearts that will forever be a source of comfort for me (especially being so far away dealing with homesickness in general while being bombarded with so many new things to adjust to).  It’s like peace of mind with just the mere “thought” of it, if not the exact “memories”...

 

3. Through the years since we’ve lived separate lives, I still hold on to our friendship and to you being my bestfriend.  I mean, yes we have our own spouses now, but it’s just really nice and fun and sort of like icing on the cake to have you there and I feel blessed that you are there to tell my other troubles and secrets to.  My real worry sometimes (or fear, yes, I guess) is if there will come a time one day when we will not be able to have that kind of connection anymore (not communication…but the connection, if you know what I mean).  And I’m scared.  I don’t know how to describe that fear.  Just the fear of maybe losing the bestfriend I’ve always had in you (not losing you altogether because I know that you’ll always be there), you get the drift?  It’s that worry that one day when we talk it just wouldn’t be the same because we live two different lives, and with different joys, worries and struggles to deal with.  Like I’m afraid that since you have child and I don’t (at least biologically) that I won’t be able to relate to your concerns, and me not having one that you won’t be able to relate to my own concerns.  Or you being married to C* and me to A* (and they are different individuals with different personalities). Or me being here in the US and you living in the Philippines that we don’t have a common ground to touch (though in reality, with the stuff in #2 above being said, we actually do have a lot).  But I just hold on to what true friendship is really all about.  That it is being able to stay onboard with all (and despite all) the different lives, joys, triumphs, troubles, struggles and pains we have and being able to continue what “being so alike” started out for us in the first place. There is nothing else I am so “childlike-loyal” to as much as staying committed to this evolving friendship.  And to carry on through growing up and growing old, through the years of changing and evolving, and being better persons (or not).

 

That’s it, pancit!  While I am always very excited for our reunions with C*, R* and A* (and the good eats involved too, of course), how I wish I can also spend maybe a day with you alone like the old times…bold thing to say but you know us…just doing the stuff we both like or perhaps, even better just hanging out and talking and catching up (I miss those conversations – kind of comes scarce for me on my side of the world).  Or not saying anything at all. Well, maybe one day.  Maybe not.

 

Haberdee. 

 

<3 Clarisse

 

I'm now part of Society6!

I'm just happy to announce that my artwork will be available from now on at Society6! Please support me: http://society6.com/misscremebrulee. Thanks so much!!! CHECK OUT MY PRINTS AND THE WORKS OF ALL THE AWESOME PEEPS OF SOCIETY6!!

My Gallery is now up and running!

Please check it out. Orders, of course, will send some love and a few cents my way.

Thanks for all the support!
http://instacanv.as/misscremebrulee

The Last Unicorn

Just sharing an excerpt from my most favorite book of all time…THE LAST UNICORN:

I can never get tired of reading this over and over.  It always strikes a chord in my heart.


The unicorn was gray and still. "There is magic on me," she said. "Why did you not tell me?"


"I thought you knew," the magician answered gently. "After all, didn't you wonder how it could be that they recognized you?" Then he smiled, which made him look a little older. "No, of course not. You never would wonder about that."


"There has never been a spell on me before," the unicorn said. She shivered long and deep. "There has never been a world in which I was not known."


"I know exactly how you feel," Schmendrick said eagerly. The unicorn looked at him out of dark, endless eyes, and he smiled nervously and looked at his hands. "It's a rare man who is taken for what he truly is," he said. "There is much misjudgment in the world. Now I knew you for a unicorn when I first saw you, and I know that I am your friend. Yet you take me for a clown, or a clod, or a betrayer, and so must I be if you see me so. The magic on you is only magic and will vanish as soon as you are free, but the enchantment of error that you put on me I must wear forever in your eyes. We are not always what we seem, and hardly ever what we dream. Still I have read, or heard it sung, that unicorns when time was young, could tell the difference 'twixt the two - the false shining and the true, the lips' laugh and the heart's rue."

I can never get tired of reading this over and over.  It never fails to strike a chord in my heart.


And yes! I’m the last unicorn. (and I'm alive)

FW: Stay Young

Stay Young 


We  all need to read this one over and over  - 
until  it becomes part of who we  are!

;
HOW  TO STAY YOUNG
1.  Try everything twice.
On one woman's  tombstone she said she wanted this  epitaph:
"Tried everything twice. Loved it  both times!" 

2.  Keep only cheerful friends.
The grouches pull  you down.
(Keep this in mind if you are one  of those  grouches!)



3.  Keep learning: 
Learn  more about the computer, crafts, gardening,  whatever... 
Never  let the brain get  idle.  'An  idle mind is the devil's workshop.'
And the  devil's name is  Alzheimer's! 

4.  Enjoy the simple  things.

5.  Laugh often, long and loud.
Laugh until you  gasp for  breath. 
And  if you have a friend who makes you  laugh, spend  lots and lots of time with HIM/HER.



6..  The tears happen:
Endure, grieve, and move  on.
The only person who is with us our  entire life, is ourselves. LIVE while you  are alive.

7.  Surround yourself with what you love:
whether  it's family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants,  hobbies,  whatever.. 
Your  home is your  refuge. 

8.  Cherish your health:
If it is good, preserve  it. 
If  it is unstable, improve  it. 
If  it is beyond what you can improve, get  help.

9.  Don't take guilt  trips.. 
Take  a trip to the mall, even to the next city,  state, to  a foreign country, but NOT to where the guilt  is.

10.  Tell the people you love that you love them, at  every opportunity. 
I  love you, my special  friend.



11.  Forgive now those who made you cry. You might  not get a second  chance. 

And if you don't send this to at least 4  people - who cares?
But do share this with  someone.


Remember!  Lost time can never be  found.

Be  kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is  fighting some kind of battle. 

Wine  does not make you FAT ....

- it makes you  LEAN .....
(Against  tables, chairs, floors, walls and ugly  people.)

 

God is Good

I’ve been smiling all day and smiling all night (I guess in my sleep) the past days.  I can’t tell you why.

 

 

Today at work, everybody seemed happy too.

 

A co-worker told me “You’re having a happy day, aren’t you? I could tell”.  He said I was bouncing as I walked down the hallway I might as well be whistling too.  He said he’s happy too.

 

Another co-worker called me to his office and I asked why.  He said he just wanted to tell me a joke.

 

Such a good day!  Such a good week too, considering that Monday was such a disaster…but that’s another story.

 

Oh, I have some new friends too!

 

 

 

Good karma is at work.

 

So thank you, God! 

 

 

 

 

EVERYTHING...

…that happens in your life is being for your best interest. 

 

Consider this…

 

Anything that annoys you is “for” teaching you patience. Anyone who abandons you is “for” teaching you how to stand up on your own two feet.  Anything that angers you is “for” teaching you forgiveness and compassion.  Anything that has power over you is “for” teaching you how to take you power back.  Anything you hate is “for” teaching you unconditional love.  Anything you fear is “for” teaching you courage to overcome your fear.  Anything you can’t control is “for” teaching you how to let go and trust the Universe.”

 

~ Jackson Kiddard

I think I heard God Speak to Me today...

“Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave the way open for God's wrath; for it is written, Vengeance is Mine, I will repay requite, says the Lord” Romans 12:19

 

It’s been a long time since I checked in! Words have been a struggle these days, especially amidst the very much convoluted thinking and unfounded drama wreaking havoc in our lives (thanks to hubby’s auntie who is basking in everyone’s sympathy for her much enjoyed “victim” status at the moment), with hubby appointed as the world’s greatest arch-nemesis of all time (thanks to rumor mongers who spoke too soon)….even if, truth be told, and reality be checked….seriously, he is the victim and it’s rather pathetic that defending him would actually raise more trouble in the already messed up situation. Catch 22, motha!

 

I seriously considered writing to everybody.  But I’m going to hold back for as long as I can.  For as long as sanity lets me.

 

Today…God’s word eases my burden.

 

I am holding on.    Hanging on.

 

 

 

 

Okay, one more time!!!

I'm bouncing off the walls! 

"My" Wooden Fence Template is back!  (yeah, I like to think it's mine even if there's probably a bazillion out there who thought of choosing the same one from Blogger Styles).

It's back once again!  And I don't know how many times I've lost it, pretty much gave up on it, only to gain it back and give it another chance.  It's a love-hate thing....but more of love, and just little "stupid" pain from knowing that one day, like any other random time that came, it might shut down again!  Well, it didn't really shut down, but it had a handful of problems with Photobucket...something I couldn't address myself.  But I'm patient this way....to a fault....welcoming the template with open arms again (because of LOVE), and hoping that things will change permanently....embracing it back like it never wronged me and believing that problems will no longer come...and it will be a perfect world again...forever.....and...like I never learned...and never will ...   *I'm beginning to sound trapped in the battered wife syndrome.*  Duh.

So yes, I'm happy and I'm celebrating. I really hope this will be the last of my Wooden Fence template woes. Because I'm beginning to think about pouring out the concrete on you guys, tee hee! Nothing can ruin my day today...even if I'm so close to cursing on the free donut at work that's supposed to be my lunch (because I was too lazy to pack a healthy one this morning), it's so laden with corn syrup even my ever-gustatory-enthusiastic tongue can't take.  Not to mention the top ramen option I have which is really not food but merely a tummy filler that can might as well be styrofoam, cardboard, or rubberbands dunked in hot soup. I'm gushing. 

It's supposed to be a lovely day.  And it is!  TGIF!

Anyhoozens...

HAPPY WEEKEND TO Y'ALL!

Here's a nice quote I picked up from Twitter last night:

The more I think over, the more I feel that there is nothing more truly artistic than to love people.

~Vincent Van Gogh

(Yes, including those drama kings and queens whose minds are so convoluted that they are so hard to comprehend by normal people like you and me...and those who like to wreak havoc in your life right on the very moment that you're finally feeling happy, at peace and all that!)

(And yes,  I love Vincent Van Gogh too!   Faithfully!!!)