Fun Times with Family

34/365 Days of Happiness : Fun Times with Ate Ens and The Twins

Like I have mentioned in my previous blog , Chopsuey,  my oldest sister ( like my mother - also mentioned in Living in the Moment), was no longer allowed to do household chores.

But since she is getting better, she insists on cooking meals. Not only that, she insists that she can also go to Market! Market! on her own and she can go to SM Aura to watch movies and dine out :)

So that's what we did.

Extra serving of happiness for me: I realized it's my first time to hang out in SM Aura. :) So of course, we took pictures!

First Time +SM Aura Premier

Seattle's Best @ Market! Marke

Chopsuey

33/365 Days of Happiness: Chopsuey for Lunch

My eldest sister is getting better each day. We found out last year that she had heart condition similar to Nanay’s. She was not allowed to do the usual household chores. 

Now that she is getting better, she is cooking again for the twins. She often shares their food with us. 

Today, she gave us Chopsuey. It’s good!

Thanks for the lunch, Ate Ens!

Simple Joys

32/365 Days of Happiness: Post-Typhoon Glenda Inventory of Simple Joys

1. Bangus was on sale – Nanay bought six big ones for one hundred pesos, a definite bargain.
2. I forgot that I was sick the previous day because rain water seeped through the walls. I had to do a thorough cleaning when I removed the wet carpet because water and dust underneath the it was not a pretty sight.
3. I had both time and reason to put my plan into action. I had been planning to give my room a spring clean and it got one.
4. I discovered little treasures while I was cleaning my room:

• Eleison’s Christmas gift – finally sent
• Borrowed book from Leng – not yet returned but will be soon
• My “to read” books – neatly stacked on my desk and will be read in coming weeks
• Stash of usable clothes – already worn one in the office
• My old “to-do” list – will find time to check the unchecked: Voter’s, Postal and Unified ID
• My sewing machine, along with clothes that need mending. The curtains (my Christmas project) are still missing.
• My scrapbooks –in-progress and the new, unused ones
• Old pictures – perfect for #tbt.  Here's one.

I Have A New Blog!

31/365 Days of Happiness : 365 Days of Gratefulness

Nanay's garrden was devastated by Glenda. These are the survivors.

The trees that are  part of our childhood stand proud as well.

Yet despite our best efforts to see the sun after the storm, we can't close our eyes to those who were harmed and those who lost their loved one. Our roof can be repaired. Nanay's garden can be replaced. What we lost, we could regain; but for others, this may not be so. This moment may have not brought me happiness, but I remain grateful. 

I will continue with my 365 of Happiness Blog but will pursue my new happiness:
the 365 Days of Gratefulness (http://365daysofgratefulnessbyruth.blogspot.com).

See you there!

I Love MS Excel and I Know It

30/365 Days of Happiness: MS Excel Rocks

It's day 30 of my 365 days of happiness. I could not sleep because of Typhoon Glenda. So I spent the time analyzing how the 30 days went. What made me happy? What should I do more?

I realized that MS Excel can help me analyze these things. 
So, I dumped my blog data in Excel table, did a quick pivot table and created this graph that shows fifty per cent of my happiness is from relationships - with God, family, friends,  myself and random people. 
Where I could improve on is on actions - doing good deeds and getting involved in community.

Just to make sure the relationship is not all "me-time," I did a deep dive analysis. And here's what I got.

Pets being last in the list looks fine, but Relationship with God, being second to last does not feel right. That's also a opportunity I should look into. God, after all is the source of all happiness in the world.

Just in case you are wondering how I categorized my source of happiness, here it goes:

I love MS Excel and I know it. Hope the weather clears up tomorrow because I am definitely missing work.

Sick, Yet Grateful

29/365 Days of Happiness : Sick, Yet Grateful

I was sick last Sunday night -- all night. I had a terrible headache that neither Biogesic, Advil nor Dolfenal could take away.

Lying down ill, my headache kept me up all night.

It got worse the next morning.  My muscles began to feel the pain, too. The back muscles seemed to weigh a ton -- moving up is an effort and lying down is a bliss.

What's in this pain that would make me grateful?

1. Thank God, I am still alive. 
2. Thank God I can still feel. 
3. Thank God for slowing me down and giving me time to be aware of what my body needs or does not need. Getting ill is just your body hollering at you to listen to it. Sometimes, it whispers softly, so you have to tune in.
4. Thank God for Inday's healing hands. I am better now.

Ordinary People

28/365 Days of Happiness :The Ordinary People We Sometimes Take for Granted

"He's very polite, isn't he?" Yuki voiced out her observation of the taxicab driver. The cab that brought us home has just left. Looking at the leaving cab, I agreed with Yuki.

How many times have we encountered polite taxicab drivers? How do we acknowledge this politeness?

How do we acknowledge the presence of the guards who open doors for us and greet us good morning? of the F&S staff that keep our office clean?

They are just few of the ordinary people we meet everyday; along with the new paper boys that deliver news papers every morning, in good or bad weather; the repairmen that fix our Internet, plumbing, AC units and appliances that need fixing.

I want to thank all the ordinary people who are doing what they need to do; and in doing so, our life gets easier and happier.

God must really love ordinary people--He made so many of them . (Will Rogers)