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Sunday, July 31, 2011

Online Math Tutorials for Kids

In my desire to make teaching math exciting, I googled online math tutorial and IXL website came up. After trying out the site along with their practice problem, I was convinced that this site is gonna help me teach math to Aj and abby.  The only setback is that it comes with a monthly subscription of $9.95 per month but hey i figured it is a good price to pay for the materials and site development alone.  So i signed up using my BDO virtual card.

The BDO virtual card is an extension of your BDO credit card only that it is used mainly for your online purchases.

Hot Chocolate and Puto Maya

I just found the greatest bargain at Market Market today. At the basement supermarket where the merienda food stalls were located, there is a stall that sells a glass of hot chocolate for 7 pesos and a serving of puto maya for the same price. So with only 14 pesos, i am transported to iligan market where i used to get up early in the morning to eat puto maya with chocolate.  It's delicious too, truly a bargain.  A glass of hot choco at dunkin donuts costs no less than 30 pesos.

There's nothing like puto maya and chocolate to remind me my other home in Iligan and still another in Bohol. I always stock up on tablea because we eat champorado on weekend mornings.  It has become a tradition that i started ever since we've relocated here.  I think it's good to have traditions, especially one that unites every one at the table. Champorado is easy to do but Puto Maya is not as easy so am just happy that Market Market is just a stone throw away.

Saturday, July 30, 2011

Melissa

So rainy season is here which gives me a reason to indulge in my craving for melissa for a long time now. I went to Rustan's Shangrila the other day to check out the latest stock of Melissa shoes and unfortunately I found one I like. And bought. Which sets my savings back a couple of pesos. tsk tk

Yeah, this is regret you're reading because my newly bought Melissa shoes even though it looks extremely comfortable and beautiful, is actually painful when i wear it for long periods of time. I don't know why because when i tried it at Rustan's , the fit is just right even though the flats i liked was size 36 and I'm usually a size 37.

I really thought that the steep price i was paying for the flats was value for money because i will wear it almost everyday that it will rain and it's going to last for a long time since it's made of moulded soft plastic. So now, i bought Johnsons and Johnsons band aids so that i won't have blisters on my feet when i wear my Melissa flats.

I could just have bought imitation flats that costs 250 pesos instead. I got this image from Polyvore which sells melissas on line. It is the exact image of what i bought except mine was nude all through out including the bow. 




Don't get me wrong, I think that Melissa have beautiful products, i just don't think it's practical to wear them on a daily basis as per my experience. I won't mind paying for something expensive as long as i get to wear it comfortably. Mine is really beautiful though, sayang lang.

Sunday, July 24, 2011

Random thougts

Sometimes while waiting in line at kfc, I get bits of wisdom disguised as random thoughts. So am thinking its gonna be lonely when my parents will leave for Iligan. And the thought brings a hint of melancholy and the threat of tears. But am in a middle of a frenzy meal ordering mass, so the threat subsides.

But we move on, we always do. Perhaps the moving on takes sometime for some, others do not dwell on it that there never was evidence that we miss the presence of love ones.

Who was it who said "parting is such a sweet sorrow?" Hits the nail right on the head. Growing up entails a lot of going away and coming back, ending somethings and starting new ones,knowing what can be done and admitting that you have done all you could.

Why this thoughts? I'd really want my parents to stay with us on a longer basis. But the family home is in Iligan and my place is with the husband. And tumoultous it may be living here in the big city, I can say that I am where I should be and happy to be. But, yeah I will miss my parents.

Monday, July 18, 2011

Driving Again

So i finally got the nerve to drive all the way from Bonifacio Global City to Pasay where star city is located. It's Abby's birthday today and last week was Aj's and tomorrow my parents and sister will go back home to Iligan, i figured they needed to see some of manila's landmarks. The kids especially have been wanting to go back to star city for the longest time. My parents haven't been there also. It was supposed to be yesterday but i had a terrible headache that lasted for as long as i was lying in bed. It wouldn't do. When i work, they just stay at home. Not that they were complaining.

So i prayed and read the map over and over again searching for the most direct route. One thing gets validated: what you can conceive, you can achieve. In my case, with a lot of time pouring over manila street maps and a lot of prayers. I guess, it's no big deal for most of you. I lived in iligan for most of my life and although i live here for more than 2 years now, i still am a probinsyana at heart. I have not been driving in a long time like probably 3 years since I was behind the wheel and never in the big city. I have my share of vehicular mishap stories to tell one of which involved destroying my mama's face. So getting behind the wheel and driving again takes so much courage from me. Extending that to driving around metro manila's busiest like Edsa,C5, Gil Puyat,sidestreets full of tricycles and cities with flyovers,underpasses, uturns and traffic well it raises the anxiety to a much higher level. But as with everything else, with practice and lots of prayer, resolve and determination, one finds the task easier and less daunting.

So anyway, with my family in tow i took the gil puyat and reached star city with only one stop and that is only for gas and my tires checked. Somehow, i already knew that star city opens at 2pm so again i braved diosdado macapagal highway and went to mall of asia to have lunch. Actually, i first did a drive around just to get an idea where to park. Also for my return route, i chose edsa cause again its the most direct.

It is kind of exhilarating when one conquer one's fear. Or getting out of one's comfort zone. For one thing, it builds confidence. I admit i am not the most confident of person. Nor ambitious. I think that there is something about ambition that keeps a person struggle to prove so much, takes on lots of challenges, forever staying out of comfort zones just to achieve and the process in turn gives him or her so much confidence and self-belief.

So, i am driving again.

Sunday, July 17, 2011

One more time UCPB

In an earlier post, I wrote about how customer service sucks at UCPB-San Miguel branch. A few months after having blogged about it, a bank officer called me up and apologized. So it was forgotten already but what's definitely good about it is that there is now a change to how they process over the counter withdrawal concerning accounts opened at other branches and withdrawn from another.  I haven't actually gone back to UCPB-San Miguel since UCPB-shangrila is more convenient for me now. 

When I went to UCPB-Shangrila to make an over the counter withdrawal, it took me less than 15 minutes less when there's fewer people. Apparently, they already view signatures online and only asks for two valid identification cards and presto you get what you came for. They did away with faxing the withdrawal slip to your branch to verify the signature or waiting for the confirmation to be faxed back. Major major improvement in processing time! And by the way, the tellers are more approachable in a way that they don't look too pretty, too made up  or too snobbish that intimadates you from asking questions about your account. Well, it matters to me that tellers should be approachable! They hardly serve with a smile but as long as they are polite and attends to my needs immediately, that's enough for me.

There's just one thing that noticed my attention though: last week when i went there, an old lady asked the UCPB guard his name before going out. Apparently, the lady got miffed because the guard has a habit of looking over the shoulder of customers filling out forms.  Guards should really not do that even when their intention is to be available just in case the customers need help.  Keep a respectful distance. Customers will ask if and when they need help.

So anyway, I am more than satisfied with how UCPB-Shangrila serves.

Fear Factor

I really could do more things if I am not held back by fear.  I could go explore new places,  bring visiting love ones to tourist destinations.  As it is, my fear of getting lost or violating traffic laws has limited me to go to familiar places.  I really should fight fear else it will dominate me in every aspect of my life.  And that is not the way to live life.