Blog De Ouro

After feeling burnt out and yearning badly for the weekend, what better way to start my Saturday with a beautiful blog award from Photo Cache. Thank you so much for this award. I am passing the award to:

1. Prinsesa's Anatomy
2. Buhay Bahay-Bahayan
3. Eden's Happy Dose
4. Jehan's Addictions
5. Love and Life
6. Princess Dyanie
7. Surviving Korea
8. Sail On
   

The rules for this award:

1. Show the award in your blog.
2. Link back to the blog that tagged you.
3. Pass the award to 8 blogs or more that you love.
4. Inform the bloggers that they have been awarded.
5. Take your time, there's no pressure, but try to check out the other awarded blogs.

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I also found out I accidentally deleted my blog list, but I'm slowly putting them back in. I wish everyone a happy weekend.

Under The Weather

When you live by yourself, life gets tough when you fall ill. These are the days when you long for home, terribly miss Mom's encouraging words and home cooking. I have been feeling under the weather since Thursday, but I shrugged it off and went to work anyway. Now, I feel really tired and my world seems to be spinning. Today was spent lying down on my couch just coughing and sniffling. These are the days I turn to the comfort of watching movies I really enjoy. Sick days are movie marathon days. I dug into my DVD collection and so far, I've seen Rush Hour 1 and 2, Music and Lyrics, The Holiday, The Forbidden Kingdom, Big Momma's House, and now an old time favorite - While You Were Sleeping. Let me cough and sniffle, as I fill myself with a warm soup of Pork Sinigang and a cup of Chamomile tea.

Here's my favorite line from the movie, While You Were Sleeping, it gets me every time:

Do you believe in love at first sight? Nah, I betcha don't, you're probably too sensible for that. Or have you ever, like, seen somebody? And you knew that, if only that person *really* knew you, they would, well, they would of course dump the perfect model that they were with, and realize that YOU were the one that they wanted to, just, grow old with. Have you ever fallen in love with someone you haven't even talked to? Have you ever been so alone you spend the night confusing a man in a coma?

Work Rant

Yesterday, it was madness at work, as papers piled on my desk due to a deadline. I do love being busy, but not lot like yesterday. I was frantic, worried and stressed. I didn't know which project to tackle first but managed to get it all done by their respective deadlines.
Lo and behold - I am still here. Today is the absolute opposite of yesterday, and now I find myself yawning and dozing off.

I need another cup of coffee or tea, please.

Travel: Paris

After exploring London, I took the train to Paris. This is one of the highlights of my vacation. Seeing Paris has always been a dream, and finally having the chance to fulfill it made me scream with excitement. The train from London to Paris took only two hours, so it was a sweet, short ride. I know that Paris has been featured many times, but here are my favorite photos anyway. I hope everyone enjoys them.

Paris View

The River Seine

Clean and green

A view of the city

Photos one through four were all taken atop the Eiffel Tower

Notre Dame Cathedral (It was so funny because all I could think about was Quasimodo atop the bell tower.)

The Eiffel Tower through the roof of my River Seine boat cruise

Riding the tour bus through Champs Elysees

There it stood high, but finally conquered by the owner of this blog.

Travel: Stonehenge

As promised, here are the photos from my trip to the Stonehenge. I think the photos speak for themselves. Enjoy and I hope everyone's having a wonderful weekend.

Round barrows or flat graves near and around the Stonehenge

Let's rest and enjoy the yellow fields of Canola

Sheep herd near the Stonehenge

Sheep and modern cars in harmony?

I found the English country side peaceful and charming

More Canola flowers in bloom

Seeing the Stonehenge

What is it's purpose?

A beautiful parting view - a dream come true

A Man's Love

Going back to Steve Harvey's book, I quoted him on his statement on women's love here. This is a question to women who have fallen in-love, isn't that description Harvey gave "exactly how [women] expect men to love them" back? I mean, to those who've already found - The One - don't you wish that sometimes your man will love you the way you love him? Here's Harvey's explanation of a man's love:

Well, I'm here to tell you that expecting that kind of love - that perfection - from a man is unrealistic. That's right, I said it - it's not gonna happen, no way, no how. Because a man's love isn't like a woman's love.

Don't get it confused, now - I'm not saying that we're not capable of loving. I'm just saying that a man's love is different - much more simple, direct, and probably a little harder to come by...It's just different from the love that women give and, in a lot of case, want.

I argue that if you simply recognize how, exactly, a man loves, you might find that the man standing in front of you is, indeed, giving you his all and then some. How do you know when a man loves you? Simple: he will do each of the following three things.

Profess - a man will have a title for his woman - my woman, my baby mama, etc.
Provide - a man who loves you will bring that money home to make sure that you and the kids have what you all need.
Protect - when a man truly loves you, anybody who says, does, suggests, or even thinks about doing something offensive to you stands the risk of being obliterated.

In sum, ladies, you have to stop heaping your own definition of love on men and recognize that men love differently. A man's love fits only into three categories. As I've explained, I call them "The Three Ps of Love - Profess, Provide, and Protect. A man may not go shopping with you to buy the new dress for your office party, but a real man will escort you to that party, hold your hand, and proudly introduce you all around the party as his lady (profess); he may not cuddle you and sit by the bed holding your hand while you're sick, but a real man who loves you will make sure the prescription is filled, heat up a can of soup, and make sure everybody is in position until you are better (provide); and he may not willingly change diapers, wash the dishes, and rub your feet after a hot bath, but a real man who loves you sure will walk through a mountain and on water before he'd let someone bring any hurt or harm to you (protect). This much you can believe.

I would like to hear from both men and women if this is true or not. Comment away!

Travel: Bath and Windsor Castle

One of the tours I took while in London was the "Stonehenge, Bath and Windsor Castle Tour." I really enjoyed all three, but on this post, I'm featuring only Bath and the Windsor Castle, as I think the Stonehenge deserves a post of its own. Next time though, I'd like to spend a day or two in Bath. The place is gorgeous and peaceful. I also visited The Jane Austen Center there where I did went crazy for the stationeries.

Pulteney Bridge with the horseshoe-shaped weir

Pulteney Bridge over the River Avon

One of the streets in Bath

The Roman Baths

Some strange looking sculptures adorning the streets of Bath. (Find more info on this artwork here.)

The Abbey

Part of the Crescent

Changing of the guards at the Windsor Castle

Entering Windsor Castle

The Windsor Castle - the castle is impressive and beautiful inside. Unfortunately, no photography was allowed.

I hope everyone enjoys the photos.
Happy weekend!

A Woman's Love

Last weekend, I finally bought Steve Harvey's book, Act Like A Lady, Think Like A Man, and found this really great quote about a woman's love.

Nothing on this planet can compare with a woman's love -- it is kind and compassionate, patient and nurturing, generous and sweet and unconditional. Pure. If you are her man, she will walk on water and through a mountain for you, too, no matter how you've acted out, no matter what crazy thing you've done, no matter the time or demand. If you are her man, she will talk to you until there just aren't any more words left to say, encourage you when you're at rock bottom and think there just isn't any way out, hold you in her arms when you're sick, and laugh with you when you're up. And if you're her man and that woman loves you -- I mean really loves you? --- she will shine you up when you're dusty, encourage you when you're down, defend you even when she's not so sure you're right, and hang on your every word, even when you're not saying anything worth listening to. And no matter what you do, no matter how many times you slam the door on the relationship, she will give you her very best and then some, and keep right on trying to win over your heart, even when you act like everything she's done to convince you she's The One just isn't good enough.

That's the woman's love -- it stands the test of time, logic, and all circumstances.

Steve's point here is - a man's love isn't like a woman's love but his love is still love.

Travel: City of London

While my Chicken Tinola boils, I'm posting some of my favorite photos taken in London. I'm finally able to scratch London from my dream list, but I'd certainly love to go back there again and hang out with my cousin.

The London Bridge

Trafalgar Square

A sign shop at Portobello Market

Yours truly posing at the back of Westminster Abbey

Big Ben

River Thames and the London Eye

Section of the Houses of Parliament

Street view of the Houses of Parliament

Harry Potter? Da Vinci?

Westminster Abbey Church

Another shot of the London Bridge (Taken at the London Tower)

Mind the Gap

Guard at the Buckingham Palace

I hope everyone's having a wonderful weekend, and thank you so much for all your encouragements and love.

Mahalo! (Thank you!)

Over The Top

Thank you so much Kero for this sweet, sweet blog award. I am passing this award to my new blogger friends Eden, Blue Rose, and Princess Dyanie. Have a great time guys!

1. To receive this award your blog must be exceptional in design and content; presenting us with new knowledge, a sense of style, or at times just giving us a smile!

2. Each recipient of the award will acknowledge (through a link) the person who honored them with the award.