What I Like (and Don't Like) in Coffee Shops

I love coffee and enjoy going coffee shop hopping. There is just something about coffee that makes my day. It is not just the coffee though, it is also the ambience in the coffee shop, the furnishings, the layout, the perks that they offer.

I love coffee shops that are spacious and airy, with tables and chairs and bar stools so arranged in a manner that allows free flow and unobstructed movement of the customers and the shop crew. I love contemporary design so I would really opt for a coffee shop that has contemporary bar stools for when I want to enjoy my coffee alone and couches that will not "swallow" you when I have company. I would love it if the stool has a back rest that is neither too high nor too low so that I could also lean if I want to, and has a foot rest, adjustable height and can be swivelled 360° for a more relaxing sit. Something just like the Harmony bar stool.

I love it when the main entrance of the coffee shop has an impression of inviting to it... I don't mind if the shop's busy but I just don't like it if I have to wait for some 10-15 minutes for my coffee or line up to order one. Call me lazy but I like it better if a waiter comes to take my order. :)

Of course, I would prefer if the coffee shop offers free WIFI to its customers. Most coffee shops already do. It would also be great if charging your laptop or other gadgets is free of charge but I would understand if some coffee shops charge you for a certain fee. After all, electricity is an expensive commodity and if you are only going to order a cup of coffee and stay at the coffee shop for hours on end, the shop could go bankrupt because of high operating costs.

I also like the fact that some coffee shops now have a point systems or memberships that allow its loyal customers to enjoy discounts and perks.

 

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A Friend-ly Gathering

It has been four years (or maybe more!) since I last saw my beautiful friends from the university and so when the chance came for us to meet, we didn't let the chance pass us by. I also wanted to hand over the shoe box of pens and pencils I have collected from my friends and classmates at graduate school in Germany for our little project Pens of Hope in Davao, so it was just the perfect timing.

© Photo by Mervz Mosqueda via Facebook

The little girl decided to lie down while waiting for my friends to arrive.

It was a Saturday and we decided to meet at Yellow Hauz, a quaint coffee shop in Davao City. While waiting, me and little girl ordered some refreshments. After a few minutes, Kikit and her hubby Dan, arrived carrying snorkel gear... They just came from a day of snorkeling at Paradise Beach Resort at the Island Garden City of Samal (IGaCoS). It must have been very nice to be with schools of fish, I so envy them.. Hehehe! 

A smile and a shoe box full of hope!
© Photo by Claire Apigo Guillano via Pens of Hope Page on Facebook

Anyway, before we forgot, we handed over our shoe box of pens and pencils and Kikit asked to make a souvenir shot with my little girl as the model.

After three pots of hot tea, two other girl friends, Ate Tess and Shugar (along with Sweet, her little girl) arrived. It was almost time for dinner to we transfered to Matina Town Square and opted to dine at Kanto bar and restaurant.

THANK YOU for the wonderful time! Until next time...
© Photo by Claire Apigo Guillano via Facebook

Indeed, it was a wonderful evening filled with sensible talk, laughter and wonderful company. It may have been years but it is heartwarming to know that the friendship remains. Even if we grow in numbers (family members are always welcome in the group) and we live far apart, it makes me smile to know that when we come home again, we have another family to come home to... our SICO family. :)

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All Is Well

A few weeks ago, I really had this pain in my lower abdomen. I thought it was just gas and just ignored it. But it was persistent and when it didn't go away in the next couple of days, I went to my doctor for a check-up. It not your ordinary lower abdomenal pain and she recommended that I go to see a gastroenterologist and a gynecologist so that everything will be covered. It could be my appendix, my large intestines, my kidney or my reproductive system.

Luckiy, I got an appointment for an ultrasound scan at the gastroenterologist clinic. Everything looked good and normal, the specialist said except for my right ovary. It was a bit enlarged, he said, so that I really need to see a gynecologist. Just hearing the word "enlarged" got me worrying to the nth level, and so did the husband. The also checked my urine and the results were normal. They also took some blood for further tests. On our way home with my daughter, I had the sudden fear of the unknown. I was already having thoughts of all the what if's that I had to stop myself. I had to stop thinking about all the nonsense because I know that God will always be with us and He won't forsake us.

So I got an appointment for my gynecologist last Monday. By then, the pain has thankfully subsided and nothing can be seen when another ultrasound scan was performed. My left and right ovaries all looked normal in the scan. The doctor could not explain why I had pains because he cannot see anything. He mentioned that I could be pregnant but that it was still too small to be visible in the ultrasound scan or I could be not.

At least my mind was already put at ease, knowing that everything inside of me is functioning well. Right now, I am entertaining the idea that I could indeed be pregnant but that still remains a question. I am still too reluctant to do a home pregnancy test because I don't feel any symptoms yet. But yes, all is well. God has always been and is always with us.

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Attitude

1. It is your attitude at the beginning of a task more than anything else that will determine your success or failure.

2. It is your attitude towards life that will determine life's attitude towards you. Despite many people's belief to the contrary, life pays no favorites.

3. You control your attitude. If you are negative it is because you have decided to be negative and not because of other people or circumstances.

4. Act as if you have a good attitude. Remember actions trigger feelings just as feelings trigger actions.

5. Before a person can achieve the kind of results he wants, he must first become that person. He must then think, walk, talk, act and conduct himself in all of his affairs, as would the person he wishes to become.

6. Treat everybody as the most important person in the world.

7. Attitudes are based on assumptions. In order to change attitudes one must first change one's assumptions.

8. Develop the attitude that there are more reasons why you should succeed than reasons why you should fail.

9. When you are faced with a problem, adopt the attitude that you can and will solve it.

10. We become what we think about. Control your thoughts and you will control your life.

11. Radiate the attitude of confidence, of well being, of a person who knows where he is going. You will then find good things happening to you right away.

12. In order to develop a good attitude, take charge first thing in the morning. Do say, "Good morning, GOD" or "Good GOD, morning?"

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All About Bumper Stickers

Most bumper stickers are PVC constructed stickers. They are almost always meant to be stuck to the bumpers of vehicles so that other people can see them. You can find bumper stickers that contain all kinds of messages; there is literally no message beyond the scope of a bumper sticker.

Bumper stickers may be used for commercial purposes, where businesses pay you money to put their stickers on your car. These arrangements are quite common nowadays, and there are companies that offer to find a business whose ad conforms to your choice. This is a good way to advertise, and public transport vehicles in many countries have been displaying this sort of advertising for decades. Only recently has the idea of using privately owned cars for this kind of advertising become popular. It is a good way to promote a business, and it is a good way to make some cash without doing anything but buying a car and driving it.

Bumper stickers are also often used for religious purposes. You've probably seen those old cars that are decorated with bumper stickers promoting either an apocalypse or another impending religious event. More commonly, drivers might put one or two well articulated religious stickers on their cars. If the reading is made interesting, long traffic jams become bearable for the driver in the vehicle behind you. It's a way to do some promotion of your particular religious beliefs on the go.

Custom sticker printing can be used to produce some of these bumper stickers. For example, political campaigners will ask you to promote their candidates by placing their bumper stickers on your vehicle. Drivers who support the contender may be happy to put a bumper sticker or two on their car, turning their vehicle into a mobile campaign tool for their favorite candidate.

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Spring Cleaning

It is Spring time and for of us who enjoy the four seasons, spring is always something to look forward too. Why? Because it is around this time of the year when we celebrate Easter, the day our Lord Christ has resurrected from the dead and is also the time of the year when the Catholic Church celebrates the new church calendar year.

For normal human beings like me, spring also means spring cleaning where we clean up all the stains in the house, change the curtains and linens and carpets into fresh ones, vacuum out the dusts and rid the house of the cobwebs... so that it will look good as new.

Perhaps this should also be true for our inner beings. Remember the passage from the Bible where Jesus turned over the tables and sent the vendors away because they have made God's House into something like a palengke or market.

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Have A Safe Trip!

Members of our new community here in Germany, the Sto. Nino group will be having their pilgrimage from September 21st to 26th. I pray that God will bless our Nanays, Ate's and Kuya's a safe trip.

The group will be visiting Dresden, Poland and Prague to visit the many religious places like the Black Madonna and the Holy Infant Jesus of Prague. At first we were thinking of joining but since hubby can't take a vacation leave anymore due to workload, we opted not to go. It would be difficult to travel with a toddler by myself. I know that God will understand. We will just send with the group our prayers and petitions and candle offerings so that it would feel like we are still with them.

The first pilgrimage that we joined in was the one in Heroldsbach in Nurnberg. It was in a small town where the apparition of the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to little children. We arrived just in time for the 10:00AM eucharistic celebration. Then we visited the church and the apparitions of the BVM were recounted to us through the beautiful stained glass windows of the church. It was a beautiful and uplifting experience. And I hope that the Vatican will soon recognize the apparition site as a Holy Place.

The main altar of the church.

The Sacred Heart of Jesus.

I hope that in the coming pilgrimages, it wouldn't be that long and far so that we will be able to join. And so that we may also grow stronger in our faith through the spiritual experience and enlightenment that one who embarks on a pilgrimage usually gets.

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Mary Did Not Complain

The Pieta at St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican, Rome depicts the Virgin Mary cradling the dead body of Jesus Christ.

She said YES to the call of God despite her fears and gave birth in a manger.
Yet she never complained.
She worried over Jesus and had to give him up for the sake of others who needed him most.
Yet she never complained.
She witnessed the suffering and death of her son during His passion.
Yet she never complained.

I had dishes to do, a baby to attend to, a house to keep, laundry to wash and press, bed to make, blogs to write, budget to manage and all other mundane things that a wife and a mother has to do in this world and I (most of the time) COMPLAIN. And I should be ashamed. Because compared to Mary, all my cares and troubles are miniscule.

Meditating on the life of Mary through the Holy Rosary made me realize how selfless, how loving, how giving she was. She didn't care much for herself and served God with all her heart and with all her soul. May I be able to do all these things and more with love and happiness knowing that I serve my family and the Lord for His greater glory. I admit I am no superhero, but for the sake of my family, may I be the Supermom and Superwife that they deserve.

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Love Thy Neighbor

It was a Saturday evening. Hubby went out to go karting, as what he usually does on Saturdays. We didn't go with him though and decided to just stay at home because Sam just recovered from her ear infection.

I looked out our window and noticed that our balcony is wet... and water is trickling down from above. I thought it was raining hard again and so I went out. The odd thing was that only our side of the balcony is wet and the adjacent ones are dry. Hmmm... I thought, "So the neighbors on the floor above decided to clean their balcony, wash off the dirt with water and just allowed the water to trickle... Tsk! Tsk!" Good thing I had no laundry to dry that day, otherwise, they would get soiled and wet.

Then my door bell rang. I looked out the peephole to see who it was. It couldn't be hubby. It is too soon for him to be home. And I wasn't expecting any visitors. Then I saw a woman who looked quite furious and impatient. I nervously opened the door and asked what it was she needed or was looking for. Furiously, she ranted in German about something gone "kaput" and "wasser im balkon!" and "Jetzt!". She must have said a lot of things but I only understood those few words. And I told that I didn't water my plants just now and raised my hand up to indicate that the people from the 5th floor did it. I kept shaking my head saying "Nein, nein..." and when she gave up, figuring out that I couldn't understand her, she gave. Then I said "Enschuldigung..." which meant "I'm sorry..."

I was terrified when I closed the door. The Germans are really a brave lot, at least the person who came to my door was. I know I had every right to be indignant of her accusations but I cannot defend myself using their language. But then again, she was furious too because something was ruined because of the water. I prayed for an understanding heart as I remembered what Jesus said, "Love thy neighbor."

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I Got An Award!

This came as a surprise and I am so sorry to Sarah of Steadfast Steps for doing this just now! This is long overdue and I do apologize!

Thanks Sarah for bestowing me this award. I am humbled by this recognition.


Here are the rules to follow: When you receive the prize you must write a post showing it, together with the name of who has given it to you, and link them back. Choose a minimum of 7 blogs (or even more) that you find brilliant in their content or design. Show their names and links and leave them a comment informing they were prized with ‘Brilliant Weblog’. Show a picture of those who awarded you and those you give the prize (optional).


Giving this award on to the following wonderful people:

Tara of Tara's View of the World
Yenny of Me and Mine
Kikamz of Just About Anything
Salsaberries of Salsaberries
Karen and Gerard of Karen and Gerard Zemek
Hopeful Spirit of On The Horizon
Brad of Sound of a Soft Breath

You all are great and brilliant bloggers so I hope you continue to inspire the world with your creative and brilliant writings!

God bless everyone!

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