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  • Right here. Right Now.

    "Maybe we're not supposed to be happy.
    Maybe gratitude has nothing to do with joy.
    Maybe being grateful means recognizing what you have for what it is.
    Appreciating small victories.
    Admiring the struggle it takes to simply be human.
    Maybe, we're thankful for the familiar things we know.
    And maybe we're thankful for the things we'll never know.
    At the end of the day, the fact that we have the courage to still be standing is reason enough to celebrate."

    - Dr. Meredith Grey

    ****************

     

    We don't need to think about the future.
    We have right here, right now.

  • So you had a bad day.

    When you find yourself crying in the toilet in the middle of the day, you know it's time you did something and made a change. What's the point of all talk (or in this case, all whine) and no action?

    Granted today didn't exactly start off well. I think it's one thing to be misunderstood, but it's another thing to be completely framed. And I hate that I've lost the ability to defend myself, or at least attempt to set things straight. Take blame for something that was entirely not my fault? Oh sure. Why not?

    And to make things worse, it started pouring in the middle of the day. And I hate thunders! So I did what I do best - cry.

    So there you have it. Time to wrap up this pity party and make that change. But you know what scares me the most? It's that when I wake up tomorrow, I'm gonna be plagued with second thoughts. And there we'll be, stuck at square one all over again.


    (p/s: On a related note, I kinda figured out the reason for my mood swings and crankiness. So that being said, it's time to throw out those pills. Not only do they not do what they're supposed to, they turn me into a psycho bitch. Good riddance.)

  • Not good enough.

    *cries*

    I'm starting to think that maybe I'm just not good enough. Which is a complete insult to the people who believe in me, the people who love me, my parents, and God. I know that. But it dawned on me that maybe I'm just one of those girls who needs constant change in order to be satisfied.

    And this is especially distressing because that means that everything I once believed in is untrue. I used to think I was much stronger than this, and that I had much more hope and stability. I used to pride myself on being someone who knows exactly what she wants. All these years, this has been my defense and my peace of mind whenever I think about how I went against my Dad's wishes so many years ago. Evidently all that's bullshit now.

    I can't really figure out why I'm feeling this way though. And I think until I can solve this mystery, I should stay put. I should stay exactly where I am just so I won't risk making a mistake I'll regret. But is this the right move?

    My question is this: What is the right course of action when you're in danger?

    What happens when you're taking a leisurely stroll in the forest and you cross paths with a ferocious bear? Do you run for your life in the opposite direction and pray to God that the bear doesn't catch up with you and rip you apart? Or do you stay still, so still that the bear will just eventually leave you alone?

    So, should I stay or should I go?

    "When you're young, your whole life is about the pursuit of fun.
    Then you grow up and learn to be cautious; you could break a bone, or a heart.
    You look before you leap, and sometimes you don't leap at all because there's not always someone there to catch you.
    And in life, there is no safety net.
    When did it stop being fun and start being scary?"
    - Carrie Bradshaw

    *************

  • Teenage dream.

    You think I'm pretty without any make-up on
    You think I'm funny when I tell the punch line wrong
    I know you get me so I let my walls come down

    Before you met me I was alright
    But things were kinda heavy
    You brought me to life
    Now every February you'll be my Valentine

    We drove to Cali and got drunk on the beach
    Got a motel and built a fort out of sheets
    I finally found you - my missing puzzle piece
    I'm complete

    Let's go all the way tonight
    No regrets, just love
    We can dance until we die
    You and I will be young forever

    You make me feel like I'm living a Teenage Dream
    The way you turn me on
    I can't sleep
    Let's run away and don't ever look back
    Don't ever look back

    My heart stops when you look at me
    Just one touch, now baby I believe
    This is real
    So take a chance and don't ever look back
    Don't ever look back

    Imma get your heart racing
    In my skin-tights jeans
    Be your Teenage Dream tonight

    Let you put your hands on me
    In my skin-tight jeans
    Be your Teenage Dream tonight

  • Time travel.

    What an emotional wreck today. Halfway through the morning, it hit me like a rock - I have completely and utterly lost my passion and zest for life. I'm going through the daily motions not because I'm interested, but because I have no choice. I wake up each morning uninspired, and I go to bed thanking God that the day is finally over.

    We are in school for a good three-quarters of our youth. I'll be 23 in about a month's time, and I've spent 17 years studying. And after that, I'm like, now what? I miss the days where my biggest concerns were about studying for tomorrow's Chemistry test and running away from the discipline mistress so she doesn't send me to detention for short skirts, numerous ear piercings and dyed hair. I miss staying up late at night writing essays, and spending hours in the library researching.

    Whine and whine. That's pretty much all I can do now. I wish I had the guts and ability to say, "Screw this shit, I'm done". But I'm not that brave. What about responsibilities? I'm an adult now. Geez. When did that happen? And how do I make it stop?

    I wish I could go back in time. Maybe just 2 or 3 years back. There are so many things I would've done differently. Maybe I would've taken a student loan and went abroad to further my studies. Maybe I would've gotten a job in fashion, or publishing. One thing's for sure, I would've been less emotional. I mean, I can't control what happens, but I can control how I react to things. Maybe if I was less emotional, I would've been much happier, and maybe I wouldn't have gotten my heart broken.

    But then again, I don't wanna go all out now and say my life sucks. Because it doesn't. I'm very blessed. I have an amazing family. I have hilarious friends. I have an awesome boyfriend. I like my job. I guess that's the thing about me. I keep wanting more.

    And seriously, I should quit whining. Time to wrap up this pity party! There are people out there in Japan who don't even know if they'll survive tomorrow, and here I am complaining about my perfect life?! Seriously, Stel. Can you get anymore self-absorbed?

    If this isn't a quarter life crisis, then I don't know what is.

    I want much more than this provincial life
    I want adventure in the great wide somewhere
    I want it more than I can tell
    And for once it might be grand
    To have someone understand
    I want so much more than they've got planned

    *************

    insecure |ˌinsiˈkyoŏr|
    adjective
    1. (of a person) not good enough

    When you're not careful, insecurities can eat you up alive. You spend hours a day swimming around in a pool of your own made-up fears. You relive past memories and twist it into the present. Distortion and disarray. And when you obsess about it long enough, you may even start to believe that it's real.

    And I will stop. I will stop this nonsense. I will overcome this on my own. Because this is my cross to bear. It is only fair. Funny thing is, I thought I cleaned up after myself pretty well. 

    When you're not careful, insecurities can drive you insane.

    "I'm sorry. I didn't know you were coming or I'd have cleaned up a little more.
    My life, I mean, not just the apartment."
    - The Time Traveler's Wife

    ****************

    PRACTICE NIGHT!!!

    ******************

    Tomorrow is Friday! TGIF!

    HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

    Sorry, couldn't help it! This is seriously the worst song in the whole wide world. I feel bad for the girl though. I mean, everyone's making fun of her. But c'mon, that song should be played over the world when there's a zombie apocalypse. They will retreat!

    And I fear clicking on my Tumblr page tomorrow. I'm so so so sure it's gonna be flooded with Rebecca Black jokes. Lol!

  • You are perfect to me.

    Went down to the Makeup Forever Academy with Mel yesterday after work. Mel is now a certified makeup artist! She needed faces to practice on, so of course I volunteered. I told her she can have my face anytime! Lol.

    I must say Mel did a very good job!

    Mel used the Makeup Forever HD foundation on me and it's magical! My first time wearing foundation in such a long time, but I'm so impressed! And Mel is an awesome makeup artist!

    And the Makeup Forever Academy is where I want to be too. I've watched enough makeup tutorials, played around with enough makeup, and practiced enough on myself to know that this is something I can do, and can do very well at.

    I wanna learn an extra skill because I think it will benefit me in the future. I don't know what my plans are for tomorrow, or the next month, or the next year. But I know what I'm gonna do with the rest of my life. Is that strange? I know I will become a parent one day. And when that happens, I will quit my day job and stay at home for my child. Some people tell me that's like throwing my education away. Or throwing my life away. But I don't see it that way. My Mom had a colourful life before she had me. She gave everything up when I came into her life. But she's one of the happiest people I've ever seen. I don't think she threw her life away. I think she gained it. And she's my role model.

    I think when you choose to become a parent, you take on a whole new responsibility in life. It's not about you anymore. When I become a parent, I want to be a responsible one. Someone who not only provides material things, but social and ideological support as well. It's not just about feeding them and giving them shelter and clean clothes. It's about teaching them about life, values, self-respect, self-esteem, to stand up for themselves and others, to fight for justice, to know what's right and what's wrong, and to always have compassion for the less-fortunate and needy. I want to teach them that nothing is impossible as long as you put your mind to it. They can dream big and do not have to be afraid of pursuing it. And as a parent, I will support them every step of the way. Most importantly, I will teach them to LOVE God.

    With all that in mind, I need to focus on building a home. And a home is not built with cash and credit. I'm not embarrassed to say that I want to be a stay-at-home Mom. But of course, I need to be practical. I want to be able to make some money, help my future husband out with finances, give my children a little extra something, and more importantly, take good care of my parents. And I think a job as a freelance makeup artist after I have kids is a good way to make some money, do something that I love, and at the same time be able to be with my children.

    As a matter of fact, ever since late last year, I've set up a separate savings account and starting slowly putting money in it once a month. I'm starting to save for my future children. I don't intend to have kids till I'm at least 26 or 27. So I think I have a good few years to save up enough money to make sure my children gets what's best.

    Some people say they were born to be lawyers, or doctors, or singers and actors. I think I was born to be a mother. And my biggest achievement in life would be to be able to have a nice family to have dinner with every evening. Am I throwing my education away? Am I throwing my life away? Am I absolutely unambitious and crazy? Maybe.

    I know I still have a long way to go from where I am now to where I want to be. And I know it's not time to make that move yet. But I believe God has everything planned out in His time. I need to work hard now and save up enough money and wait for the right time to enroll in the Academy. Everything will fall into place eventually. I just have to keep faith and trust that I am being taken care of. It's not gonna be a problem. It's God's problem. He has to take care of me. I just work! And I'll work hard!

    *******************
    Stiff's Tinkerbell-themed (hence the yellow and green) birthday party last Sunday!

    Sheryl says we all look like ripe and unripe bananas because of the colour combination. Lol! We kinda do. But we're cute!

    I love these people so much much much! Words can't even express! Nutty silly family and friends! I don't know why I complain about my life so much. I look at this bunch of people, and I know I'm blessed.

    ******************

    Another reason why I'm blessed:

    I finally got my hands on the Urban Decay Naked Palette! This means so much to me, you have no idea. I've been waiting for this for months! Tried to buy it off ebay previously, but... long story. Anyways, I've been stalking the Sephora Facebook account for months. Everytime they announced a new shipment of the Naked Palettes, something would crop up and I wouldn't be able to rush down to the nearest Sephora to grab it.

    A couple days ago, the Sephora Facebook account announced it's FINAL shipment of the Naked Palettes. I was preparing for a weekend shoot and upset as hell. Today, I happened to waltz into Sephora, and lo and behold!, it was still in stock! I could practically hear the angels singing in the background.

    Yes, I am going to need to eat white bread and drink sky juice for the rest of the month. But I swear it's totally worth it! The colours are so pretty! The shadows are so soft and the colour payoff is amazing! I'm a happy girl!

  • She's all laid up in bed with a broken heart.

    But we're gonna start by drinking old cheap bottles of wine
    Sit talking up all night
    Saying things we haven't for a while
    We're smiling but we're close to tears
    Even after all these years
    We just now got the feeling that we're meeting
    For the first time

    Oh these times are hard
    Yeah they're making us crazy
    Don't give up on me baby
  • Built to last.

    It sucks to be a woman. Really it does.

    I have been an insane emotional wreck this week. Everything and anything made me wanna a) rip someone's head off, b) punch a wall, c) cry. And this is all accredited to one thing - PMS. Ladies, let me hear you scream!

    This monthly hormonal overdose is enough to make me want to hang myself on a ceiling fan. And this month, my PMS was on crack. It doesn't help that it's been an extra hectic week at work. And come to think of it, this week is never gonna end for me. Literally. Considering the fact that I will be working throughout the weekends. But of course, this medium amount of stress was multiplied by infinity because of PMS.

    So imagine my joy today when 'Aunt Flo' came knock knock knocking on heaven's my door. I thought, "PMS BEGONE!" But I forgot the next worst thing - cramps.

    Yep. Before I knew it, I was head over heels in pain. And I have very severe cramps. Think cold sweat, immobility and fainting spells. That's how bad my cramps can be. But praise God, for the past few months, the cramps were relatively bearable. It did not stop me from carrying on with my planned activities. However, this month, I was not spared. I had the mother of all cramps today.

    I sat there at my office desk bent over in pain but I really couldn't say anything. There's a mountain of work to clear before my shoot this weekend and I cannot afford to lay back and relax. So there I was trying to remain calm, while deep in my mind, I was mentally throwing all kinds of curse words I knew at my ill-fate of being born with a uterus. I had to run to the toilet a couple of times to throw up. And usually that would make me feel better, but say hello to Murphy and his goddamn law.

    I scooted out of the office early to go for a location recce, and quickly met up with Mel, Ryan, Thomas and Edwin after that. Thankfully the cramps were mild during dinner and I managed to gobble some food down. But soon after, it came back. This time with a vengeance. So as the band practiced their songs for Issac's wedding, I sat at the corner of the room whimpering in pain.

    Ryan dug out all the chocolate in his house to try and pacify me. But it didn't work!

    Ughhh... Nonetheless, I had a great time with the band. As always. I missed them! Edwin sang an amazing rendition of Rod Stewart's 'Have I Told You Lately' and Mélée's 'Built To Last' (will upload it on youtube soon). I'm kinda bummed I won't get a chance to perform with them this time around. But we received an email today inviting us to perform at another event. So we'll see!

    I miss band jamming sessions. Can't wait for another one next week!

    ****************

    I'm gonna give myself the benefit of the doubt and trust that I'm being like this only because of PMS. But seriously Stella, you need to get over yourself. Period.

    ****************

    I doubt I'll be getting much sleep tonight. I believe these cramps are gonna be keeping me up. Nonetheless, goodnight. I shall try to sleep.... or maybe eventually pass out from the pain. Either ways, at least I'll get some shut eye.

    ****************

    I've looked for love in stranger places,
    But never found someone like you.
    Someone whose smile makes me feel I've been holding back,
    And now there's nothing I can't do.

    'Cause this is real, and this is good.
    It warms the inside just like it should,
    But most of all it's built to last

  • Just you and me.

    "Only once in your life, I truly believe, you find someone who can completely turn your world around.

    You tell them things that you’ve never shared with another soul and they absorb everything you say and actually want to hear more. You share hopes for the future, dreams that will never come true, goals that were never achieved and the many disappointments life has thrown at you. When something wonderful happens, you can’t wait to tell them about it, knowing they will share in your excitement.

    They are not embarrassed to cry with you when you are hurting or laugh with you when you make a fool of yourself. Never do they hurt your feelings or make you feel like you are not good enough, but rather they build you up and show you the things about yourself that make you special and even beautiful.

    There is never any pressure, jealousy or competition but only a quiet calmness when they are around. You can be yourself and not worry about what they will think of you because they love you for who you are. The things that seem insignificant to most people such as a note, song or walk become invaluable treasures kept safe in your heart to cherish forever. Memories of your childhood come back and are so clear and vivid it’s like being young again. Colours seem brighter and more brilliant. Laughter seems part of daily life where before it was infrequent or didn’t exist at all.

    A phone call or two during the day helps to get you through a long day’s work and always brings a smile to your face. In their presence, there’s no need for continuous conversation, but you find you’re quite content in just having them nearby. Things that never interested you before become fascinating because you know they are important to this person who is so special to you.

    You think of this person on every occasion and in everything you do. Simple things bring them to mind like a pale blue sky, gentle wind or even a storm cloud on the horizon. You open your heart knowing that there’s a chance it may be broken one day and in opening your heart, you experience a love and joy that you never dreamed possible. You find that being vulnerable is the only way to allow your heart to feel true pleasure that’s so real it scares you.

    You find strength in knowing you have a true friend and possibly a soul mate who will remain loyal to the end. Life seems completely different, exciting and worthwhile. Your only hope and security is in knowing that they are a part of your life."

    - Bob Marley

  • Happy birthday Mummy!

    HAPPY BIRTHDAY MUMMY DEAREST!

    You are the calm
    I am the storm
    You are the breeze that carries me on
    When I set adrift
    You anchor me
    You're there for me

    Sunshine through my window
    That's what you are
    My shining star
    Sunshine
    Making me feel I'm on top of the world
    Telling me that I'll go far