Hazel Ceej

My reading pile is still a pile - book reviews, press releases, SEO pieces, but TGIF! I'm putting them all aside to have a look back at my week. Which to be honest has been a bit bumpy as far as work is concerned. Thank goodness there's personal life to run to and where we have better control over the happiness meter. I took my own sweet time enjoying life's little pleasures -- 1. Cousin weekend . Being an only child, the closest person I have to a sister is cousin Vi. Her young sons are well-behaved, loving, brainy and they call me Auntie :-) Meals and chatter with them are quadruple the fun. I love them even more for agreeing to stay at home while Vi and I went shopping at a night bazaar. 2. Camera . When a hesitant techno-ignoramus finally approaches features on a gadget, the result is fun galore. This is Milton's justification of the blank verse of Paradise Lost. The literary legend used f for s , a strange character for c and so on. I found it fascinating. 3. Si...

It's Friday and time for a look-back: 1. Paying attention to my nook on its wakey mode. Monday I arrived at work an hour early. Brown birds were chattering precociously on the still-empty parking lot. The gardener's dog was munching a rubber slipper behind the gate. The place smelt like it had never known pollution of any kind. I liked what I witnessed. 2. Multi-lingual multi-tasking : - ears listening to an earphone song, nakalimutan mo na bang tumawa? (have you forgotten to laugh?) - fingers composing a text message, nikaon na si CJ? (has CJ eaten yet?) - eyes scanning a PR paper, "... government to mobilize resources for defense and military establishments" - mouth clarifying instructions, mai ao tini; song akhan sippeht (I don't want it here. Send it to Bldg. 18) *Three languages, one dialect lasting less than 3 minutes. I thought it was fun. 3. Apple pie with warm custard sauce; beef cheese tacos garnished with tomatoes and cilantro eaten over good conv...

Less than 24 hours after sharing last week's highlights, my next set of faves was guaranteed. And weekend wasn't even over yet. I don't know what I did to deserve it but I'm thankful - 1. Church . I went. Really. A friend suggested it and I made a snap decision to go. Something became clear to me again: the reason I insist on having a day off work in a week is to calm down from it all. No matter how seldom, it's good to recharge spiritual batteries. 2. Hearty lunch at an elegant Thai restaurant with an international menu. We had lasagna, avocado salad with cantaloupe in oil and vinegar dressing, banoffee cheesecake, etc. The bonus? Stairs up for grabs: cost effective for calorie-burning. 3. Dasa is a second-hand book store with a coffee shop on its second floor. There were several titles I liked. It's gonna be a new haunt certainly. 4. Peterson Gallery . Priced from $2,000 to $163,000 - pianos galore! Once in awhile I wander into places like this. And I fancy a...

It's a week abundant with life's little pleasures, and I'm enjoying such a great Friday mood with the FFF ladies over at Susanne's Living to Tell the Story . If you are dropping by from Mommy Moments, please scroll down a bit; thank you. Now the highlights of my week -- 1. Birthday dinner at Cabbages and Condoms . A friend put up with my fondness for dining out and exploring restaurants. C & C supports social development programs of the PDA, an organization that complements the Thai government's effort to promote family planning. 2. Cafe de Tu . We took the sky train to get to a posh mall for dessert. There's a lovely ambience for a slice of chocolate banana cake and a long glass of iced lemon tea. It was sheer relaxation verbalizing ephemeral wishes. From the high ceiling pretty lamps cast off a warm, soft glow making the place conducive for twilight dreams. 3. Work over lunch at Fuji . Now comes a hard, raw bit. I had to carry work to one lunch but it he...

This is a 2-in-1 post today. I sort of incorporated the contents as they are related and fall into similar concepts for both memes which are equally significant to me. If you are dropping by from Mommy Moments, please scroll down. Thanks. Friday's Fave Five , hosted by Susanne at Living to Tell the Story is right next - It's probably a matter of orientation: I am used to uneventful birthdays. What I'm not used to is missing a few things. But I didn't and this week's faves are about what I'm thankful for the most: 1. Monday which was the day came and went peacefully. No issues at work, I ate what I wanted to eat, did a little shopping and I easily found the 'celebration' restaurant for tomorrow. I'm excited. 2. Greetings from good friends. I didn't expect anyone to call or email but they did and I appreciate that. 3. A promise in the sky, woot! See heaven's kiss on earth to boot. 4. Ticket to David Foster and Friends concert in October pu...

Except one of these faves, all four are talents of the male species. They shine! 1. Decaffeinating I had coffee overdose during my recent island holiday. I have to abstain from the drink to function well at work. The attempt must have been fairly successful. No more twitching eyelids. 2. Helpful guard By the time a film I viewed was over, the mall that houses the cinema was long past its operating hours. Devoid of shoppers the building suddenly looked gigantic and eerie. Emptiness disoriented me and I could not find an open exit. Alas, the only familiar spot was the basement parking. I tarried there stubbornly deciding that I'd rather do a vigil than call the Ex for help. About a minute into feeling like an idiot, a guard appeared and in halting Thai I explained my plight to him. He radioed for a taxi and I got home safely. 3. Cheerful driver Wednesday afternoon: "ta-ta, it looks like rain" and I was a few yards away from my apartment. I jumped on one of these mopeds plyi...

August 12th, the Thai Queen's birthday is a national holiday here. That was Thursday and what luck, work bosses decided to give us Friday, the 13th free too. I and a couple of friends headed off to Thailand's second largest island, Koh Chang (Elephant Island), referred to by some as the Oriental Eden of the East . It's difficult trimming these faves to five but I'll try... I. Nothing beats waiting for dinner chatting on hammocks! Behind us blazing rays of the setting sun blanketed the sea; the sound of waves gentle and the breeze therapeutic. Nature was addressing the ACs cooling our city offices - this is how you treat weary Bangkokians, gentlemen . *The restaurant: Saffron on the Sea *Main course: deep fried white snapper with mango and carrot strips, sweet basil, chinese celery, and cashew nuts *Drinks: tequila sunrise drank at sunset and tempered by ginger and lemon grass tea II. Okay , I took work to the island. But I calculated that in a place so beautiful induc...

It has been a fun-filled week. These are my faves: Black Forest Usually I resist and often I am successful. But just this once I gave in to one slice of chocolate delight. Sometimes I wonder about the status of my workplace: is this still a university or has it turned into a party hub? Ok, it's still a university where birthday parties happen. I'll worry about the expanding waist later. Alone time Work on Wednesday made me forget to eat. By the time I came back to my apartment I was famished. I treated myself to brunch at my favorite Japanese restaurant. Isn't it also lucky that I got seated right away? Items that serve one's intended purpose This sounds to me like a shopping result that's worth the money: books that kick off stress, footwear that weaves 5-second dreams of a suit-clad 21st century Cinderella and accessories that compel you to relax. Time out with friends at an album promo tour When you've done nothing but focus on your job for a long time, it...

A few not-so-routine stuff and a rare one in the offing, out come my week's faves: 1. "You're blooming... are you dating?" someone at work suddenly asked me that. I laughed hard and coughed out, "what? of course I'm not!" He walked away looking pleased and determined at his own conclusion, "I knew it...you're dating." Now if it were true... but well, I loved the laughter. 2. String-tying ceremony ( I forgot my cam but here's an idea ) the charm of the tradition unfailingly upholds cultural identity 3. Walking on soft earth a refreshing break from tick-tocking on concrete all the time 4. Outdoor warmth an assignment requires me to be out of the office for four hours every Friday this term. The warm morning breeze works better on me than freezing AC's. Bye-bye, shrinking skin. 5. Hard but exciting choices a weekend with colleagues in Beijing or a few days in Bangkok with someone I haven't seen in two decades? There's only o...

This Friday is just great! I had a few irritants up my back and didn't count on coming up with a set of faves, but although life sometimes looks so dim, it also has pleasant surprises so here I am -- Possibilities I'm working on publishing a couple of academic articles and found a feasible place for them. Facebook thrill It's been 22 years since high school graduation, and so wonderful to reconnect and reminisce with former classmates and teen crushes. Another sentence, clear and straight! There's something I'm fixing nowadays. It's why I was absent from the blogosphere for some time (wrote a page about it). CJ is making significant progress and I'm on cloud nine. Although he uttered "I'm the winner, you're the loser" to his friend, I'm okay with that. I mean CJ sounds like he got some of his Dad's cold and hard, competitive stock market spirit; but as long as there is improvement or anything better than the present clinical impres...

Thailand is celebrating Songkran (Thai new year) this week. Water-throwing which characterizes the occasion has been reportedly mild especially in Bangkok where protests are still going on. It's untraditionally dry where I live and in general things have been quiet. I like the week just the way it is: A place to purchase necessities in peace I usually stay indoors during Songkran because I don't like to get drenched. To do the same thing this year I hoarded food so I didn't have to go out at anytime during the entire week. I'm glad I was able to do my shopping without having to worry about stray bullets or being trampled by a mob. A friendly man in uniform After buying everything we needed, CJ and I stood waiting opposite the mall for our ride home. Vehicles on the highway were sparse. The cop directing traffic approached CJ, and playfully tugged the Ultraman doll which seems perenially attached to CJ's hand nowadays. Then he went back to his job. It all happened wi...

Bangkok is in a state of emergency . I tried shopping yesterday but could not because protests have shut down major malls. There are no signs that anything's going to be resolved soon. As I am right where the action is I am hoping that my travel plans won't be affected. Meanwhile the rest of us are still working normally and that's a lot to be thankful for. I am also happy for other blessings: Treat from the sky Monday night it rained, saving me extra AC cost. Tuesday night a full moon was visible. Due to light pollution it's not every night that city residents get to see a sky adorned with a smiling heavenly body. Helping each other Sorting taxes is beyond me honestly, but some colleagues are good at it and willing to do it for me. In return I do something for them they'd rather not; like write the institute boss' speech around time constraints for research. Tension was high but when it was over it was hilarious how we were all in a dither while the boss just e...

As a fan of Jane Austen, I am extremely pleased with the plethora of information about her on the web. It goes without saying that I spend hours immersed in Austen blogs and equally delightful related sites. There is one I want to focus on, and it is the source of my faves this week: Sadish Jane Austen's World A classic party inside! I am drawn to this promise: "This blog brings Jane Austen, her novels, and the Regency Period alive through food, dress, social customs, and other 19th C. historical details" A good trait Vic, the blog owner writes on "About Me" "...If you would like to share a new site, or point out an error, please email me. (Yes, I am fallible. I'll own up to my mistakes and will make the corrections with a polite smile on my face.)" A familiar word It's an adjective but it's also my name . James Austen Leigh, the author's nephew describes his aunt's physical attributes - “ ... full round cheeks, with mouth and nose...

Friday's Fave Five: A Second Chance Please scroll down for Friday Photo Flashback This week has been a lot better than last week. One significant thing led to another. I'm happy about and grateful for: a second chance It looks like it is and I consider it to be so after a mistake I made on these anti-virus programs wiped out all my pictures. Most of those I label "precious" haven't been sent to email or stored in a flash drive or posted on any social network site. Everything vanished. I tried hard to be cheerful and carried on but the loss was such a nasty cloud over me last week that I grew two canker sores. Then I worked again on restoring them but without expecting anything anymore. Tweaking and hoping I tried these hidden files that warn you not to open them or your other files would be messed up. I had nothing else left to lose anyway so I risked it. Alas! there they were! The saying "you value a thing when you lose it" had never taken a more distin...

Here comes Friday! And here we come with our faves: Race cars - that are extremely speedy by design but accident-free because they're stationary in the mall; at least the seats are. CJ enjoyed the rides so much. Although we argued about our time there, I collapsed in laughter beside him while he maneuvered his way through obstacles, between nudges, and into a crash. CJ was so calm amidst my hysterics. He gave me a reproachful look which made me shut up and resumed laughing until I finally regained my poise. Exploring Street 55 An agrestic Bed & Breakfast is a charming surprise in a city like Bangkok, but I find that tiny but very dainty corner most delightful. It sells girly party accessories and looks like a shop from a fairytale. Walking on the grass under the trees with a fuzzy breeze - is a big comfort against the heat. Sorting our trip home Fares increase by the hour; but I'm glad it's only CJ's ticket I had to add a few more hundred bahts to. Mine remained the...

It's Friday and time to identify highlights of the week: A young reader to nurture After getting over a bill fright when an expensive overseas call had gone on for almost an hour, I rang cousin Vi to see when can we have another slumber party (read: splurge on food and talk all night). Vi described her 8-year old son's developing love for reading and knack for observing things. My ears perked up. It's my kind of news! Then Vi said, "I hope he'll be like you..." She didn't have to say that to make me look up my bookcase and check what could I give the boy. I'm inspired already. Jesus in Blue Jeans and Anne Frank's Tales from the Secret Annex These are the only books so far available in my stack most likely suitable for Kakoy (Vi's blossoming bookworm) and I'm reviewing them for him. I'm delighted anew at the gems on the pages, and having a grand time thinking of what else to send him. Welcome surprise from the author I included these tit...

Friday's Fave Five: Love will find a way Please scroll down for Mommy Moments Tension hovered over my week. It's related with preparations for a future endeavor, but then it's usually the way with such kind of stuff. I'm glad, like always, to reach Friday and engage in a healthy exercise of finding what is positive about the week. Once again, thank you, Susanne for Friday's Fave Five : i. Story of strength and courage I haven't been following the winter olympics, but the news story of figure skater Joannie Rochette made me reflect on life's beautiful attributes. ii. This week Final exams are going on - light work all week with lots of free time for us invigilating, not taking the finals. iii. Cashing a check and saving it When my gradschool transcript was released, I kept my ID card in my wallet and shifted my thoughts on stuff unrelated with studies. Maybe I was too happy to not think about research for awhile I also forgot that I still have some cash depo...

Friday's Fave Five: Valentine Edition Please scroll down for Mommy Moments Celebrating valentine's day without a romantic date is nothing new to me. What's relatively new is having Ceejay as my valentine date for two years now. It keeps getting better and this year it's even all that I wanted it to be and more. My faves this week are all about this year's love day. How to be a Gentleman 101 The idea is to begin lessons on giving gifts to ladies other than Mommy or Grandma Philippines and Grandma Thailand. We hadd it simple but sweet: roses for my friend Chett. I was thrilled that Cj followed instructions and Chett was happy to receive the roses. Red roses and a long, blue & white dress I thought the blooms were riotous and I enjoyed looking at them. I also finally wore the dress I almost forgot existed in my wardrobe. Bought a year ago, it was lucky to have served its purpose on hearts day. Little preferences for the day The original plan was lunch at Fuji and t...

Friday's Fave Five: Peace Talks Please scroll down for Mommy Moments Peace talks In a previous FFF post, I mentioned that students from another school fought with our students, and our billboards were damaged but I was oblivious. Well on Tuesday this week administrators and student representatives from that school came and did peace talks with us. This time I made sure I wasn't oblivious to such a good and happy event. A playful fish One of the fish in the pond at work somersaulted just when I passed by. It swished and backflipped. I thought I just imagined it but the gardener also stood watching the same fish in the same pond doing the same antic. Dental appointment After 3 weeks of searching I finally found a dentist who explained all I needed and wanted to know about CJ's teeth. There are problems. Ex is playing hard ball with me on the insurance. My mind whirled as the dentist went through words like x-ray, infection, operating room, sedation. But I'm thankful that ...

Friday's Fave Five: Regency Period Cake Please scroll down for Mommy Moments Ambience of Banana Leaf Restaurant dinners continue to be the trend for us this week. Rustic charm has always been a big hit to me and Banana Leaf's got it. Buckets of real wheat, garlic and pumpkin hang adorning the wall. Plus the sweet and sour fish and chicken with cashew nuts and mushroom are a real pleasure. J Lo Live This was a gift to me two years ago. Cj is too young to be choosy with scents. He smiles playfully when I spray it on him and I laugh inwardly thinking he is a boy wearing a girl's perfume. This week we both smell the same :) Cyberbanking I finally dragged documents and myself down K Bank to register for online financial transactions. Spending only what I earn suits me best as I avoid debts and the convenience of sorting expenses any time of day in familiar surrounding is always welcome. Music in the air Whatever happened to the PA system at work? An old song was coming off it t...