A Matter of Perspective Chronicles of my married life down under Statistics Unique Visitors: Total Unique Visitors: Outgoing: Total Outgoing: 0 0 48 4581

Articles from A Matter of Perspective

Vacation Bug 2007-10-21 23:36:00 The vacation bug has bit me and yes, I am itching to go on a vacation already! I wish it was as simple as snapping your fingers and I am brought instantly to the place of my dreams. But sadly, that is far from reality.As with all our vacations, especially if it is a trip back home to the Philippines, we always make it a point to drop by Sydney and stay there overnight to somehow break the long trip into two. It would also give us a chance to revisit the busy city that it is.Of course, staying overnight would mean us booking at a hotel usually in the Central Station area where it is close to everything that we need, be it the mall, the train station or China town. Hotel Reservations would certainly be a big help because it offers several vacation package deals on the web, which even includes hotel accomodation, car rental and flights. That is a huge plus for us as we do our bookings mostly online these days.Not only do they offer hotel bookings on their site, but they have bed and break ...

My Blogging Addiction 2007-10-20 19:56:00 Yes, I know, I know... Guilty as charged! :P80%How Addicted to Blogging Are You?Free Texas DatingSo, are you also a junkie like me? Take the quiz to find out! :) ... Blogging

Still on organizing 2007-10-20 05:37:00 Even if the house is in tip-top shape these days (after our general cleaning last Thursday), I still need a place to put several of our things in to decrease the amount of clutter. Well, they are all arranged well on our tables and shelves but using a utility cart would definitely make it more neat-looking. I really do need to shop around to have more storage space. It's either that or we would have to start throwing out some of our stuff. I'm keener on the former. ...

Back to the chopping board 2007-10-20 05:29:00 With Erin's ever increasing appetite, I am now forced to provide her with enough variety in her daily food intake. After visiting our GP yesterday, we were finally given the go-signal to give Erin solids three times a day. The GP suggested this after being informed that Erin can now finish practically a whole banana in one feeding session. There's no doubt she got her big appetite from her Dad. She isn't picky too as she eats anything I feed her. This makes meal planning for her a whole lot easier. :) ...

Business talks 2007-10-19 20:19:00 J and I are business-minded people. We love to brainstorm occasionally about what types of businesses we might want to engage in the future. Of the two of us, it is J who comes up with most ideas since he does a lot of informal market research online on his own.It makes for some interesting conversation between the two of us because it's something we really do intend to do seriously in the future. ...

Update on house inspection 2007-10-19 20:11:00 Done! It was over in five minutes. Imagine all our hard work for an entire day for just a five-minute look-see!J and I were so tired because we had to clean the house and garden from top to bottom. As I said, it was J who got the bulk of the work as I had to take care of Erin's needs as well. I think he must have overdone it because today, he's down with a cold. My poor hubby! I hope it does worsen any further. Now, I have 2 persons to take care of. Super mommy to the rescue! :) ...

Health is wealth! 2007-10-19 19:58:00 Time and time again, my mom does not fail to remind us to eat a variety of food to be healthy. If, in cases where we are unable to do so (which is quite frequent, mind you), she advises us to take nutritional supplements so we somehow still get to have a balanced diet. Between J and me, I am the most religious one in taking my vitamins as I am still breastfeeding Erin. Although nothing can ever replace real healthy foods, supplements can be okay in times like these. ... Health

Feast 165 2007-10-19 19:33:00 Yeesh, I know it's already Saturday here but hey, better late than never right? :)AppetizerIf you were a dog, what breed would you be, and why?I'd like to be a labrador. They are very dependable, gentle and highly intelligent. I'd like to think of myself in the same light. ;)SoupWhat does the color purple make you think of?Usually, it reminds me of the season of Lent, as I am Catholic.SaladApproximately how long does it take you to get ready each morning?Oh dear, maybe at least an hour; two at most! J says I am soooo slow. I think it irritates the hell out of him because he can finish in 15 minutes. That's why whenever we go out, he gives me a deadline as to what time I should be ready.Main CourseHow many cousins do you have, and are you close to them?I have only 5 first cousins, all from my father's side. Mom is an only child but she has hordes of first cousins. So, I got lots of second cousins from her side. As to their number, I think there are at least 60 of us SCs from my mom ...

Plastic or cash? 2007-10-19 18:15:00 In this day and age, credit cards, for me, provide a great convenience especially to the general consumer. Using rewards credit cards in particular can gain you points while you shop. These points can be redeemed for other items that their company offer in exchange for your loyalty to them, which I think is cool.However, people should not be totally reliant on these plastic cards. Maximising its use to your advantage should always be the way to go. For example, choose a credit card that has low interest rates. If your current card charges you a high interest rate, you can apply for one that has a lower rate and just do balance transfers. Some companies even offer zero interest for the first six months when you transfer your account to them. This really saves you a lot because you'll know you're only paying for items you bought and not the interest charges. It definitely helps to be smart in these things. Otherwise, you won't be finding yourself debt-free for some time, unless of cou ...

Makati Bomb Blast 2007-10-19 18:01:00 Tsk, tsk... The recent bomb blast in Makati City yesterday must have rocked the Philippines once again. So far, there have been 8 people confirmed dead and around 119 others wounded from the blast. So, who's behind it this time?Somebody was able to take several photos of the aftermath and while we were browsing through them, chills ran down my spine. The damage to Glorietta 2 was massive!It is sad that this had to happen, whether it was just due to an accident or a possible extremist group. The fact still remains though -- innocent lives have been taken and nothing can ever bring these people back. I hope the results of the investigation can enlighten us, especially the families left behind by these victims. ...

Into Sports 2007-10-16 20:47:00 I remember my dad being a sports fanatic even when I was just a young child back in the eighties. He would be constantly glued to the television whenever something was on, be it basketball, baseball, golf, football, etc. You name it, he'd watch it. I reckon if I had the money then to buy him a couple of world series tickets, he would have been over the moon. But hey, that's just as far as it goes. He's an avid spectator alright but he was never a sportsman. :) ...

Serious Clean-up Time 2007-10-16 20:29:00 Oh boy, the real estate agents are dropping by this Friday for another round of house inspection. They informed us through mail last week about the routine check-up.I am soooo not looking forward to it because it just means we would need to do a general cleaning of the house. Poor J will be taking most of the work as I have to tend to Erin. I'd really love to help out but somebody has got to take care of the baby too.Argh! There is so much to clean! I wish I could just snap my fingers and our fairy godmother can do all the tidying up for us. I am really hoping we can do everything in time for the visit on Friday. *keeping our fingers crossed* ...

Rock Chick No More 2007-10-16 20:13:00 I love music. Wait, let me rephrase that. I do not love all forms of music. :)Over time, I have noticed how much my taste for music has changed. In my younger, teeny bopper years, I would have gone for Madonna and all those songs by other Pop Rock artists. There was a time too that I dug heavy metal and rock because my younger brother was so into it. I would have gotten him Van Halen tickets had there been a chance. But that was only short-lived. During my days in college, the bands were so alive and we'd even attend concerts regularly just to hear them play. These days? Well, I am just content with listening to CDs upon CDs of soothing timeless classics from the 70's, 80's and 90's. I think it's what you call as "getting old." Haha! ...

Visa update 2007-10-16 19:21:00 Yesterday, I received a letter from Immigration informing me that I should now apply for permanent residency. Yay! :)I have only been here since March 2006, which means that I have been residing in Australia for less than two years as of today. I thought it was too soon for them to be notifying me. But, I suppose they want to give me enough lead time to process my application.I've already downloaded all the forms from their site and all I need to do now is fill them up and gather enough evidence (bills, photos, tickets, etc) to support my application. It's back to digging up old stuff again for me. It's a good thing they don't require huge amounts of pictures unlike last time. The challenge this time is to be able to fit everything in an A4-sized envelope. As to its thickness, maybe i'll come up with another wedding album sort of thing. Ha!I've got two months to get it organized. I hope the whole thing gets processed before our trip to Manila in May next year. Otherwise, it will ...

Saving heaps 2007-10-15 21:40:00 I have been talking about coupons incessantly, if you've noticed. That is because I am a frequent user of them as I firmly believe that they are an awesome way to get massive discounts while you shop.Take my case for example. I am currently on the look-out for a cheap but good notebook because of the oodles of work I have now that are web-based. Using Dell coupons is one way where I can save on such a purchase. Getting a big discount from Dell will definitely make my day! ...