Travis and I spent last weekend in Fergus Falls.  It is our way to get out of the busy life of the metro area.  It has also been awhile since we last visited Grandpa and Grandma in the farm.  And both of us missed Grandma’s cooking. We expected to see more family last weekend.  And sure enough, Travis’ uncles and their families were there.  They are even new faces as some of them brought friends along to camp.  We did not put up our tent and decided to sleep in the camper.  We went tubing since the weather was just perfect for it and of course, we went fishing.

Instead of keeping our catch and cooking it, Travis and I decided to simply catch and release.  Fishing has become popular and it lead to the problem of having too many people and too few fish.  In some places, catch and release fishing has been implemented.  So why catch and release?  Catch and release offers a way of prolonging the fishing trip after you have reached the reasonable or legal catch limit.  So it helps you make the most out of your trip.  Secondly, several studies show that as anglers get expertise on a particular fishery or fishing method, they develop and interest in “limiting their kill instead of killing their limit”.   Read the rest of this entry »

Man existed to pursue his own happiness.  We are motivated to do something because it will make us happy.  We tend to make decisions with happiness at the back of our heads.  Just like in Marriage, we marry the person who we think will give us the feeling of happiness.  We marry someone who makes us feel good about ourselves. Our daily actions are directed to our ultimate goal of being happy.

I have always been a selfless person.  Tatay and Nanay (my father and mother) taught me that.  I put everyone else especially my significant others ahead of me.  My happiness rely on them.  If they are happy, then I am happy.  It was a big mistake.

For the past days, as different encounters start to unravel, I have realized that my happiness does not  depend on other people’s happiness.  It should come from within and let it shine to others.  I have the capacity to pursue my happiness and I will do just that.

I will be happy because I can.

“Freedom in general may be defined as the absence of obstacles to the realization of desires.”

-Bertrand Russell

Nope! It’s no typo. It just so happen that on the same month as the Americans celebrate their Independence and the same date as the Filipinos celebrate ours, Travis and I have finally achieved the Independence that we have been waiting for. Yes, we are out of the basement and out from the responsibilities that shouldn’t be ours in the first place.

We rented an apartment with Travis’ bestfriend in one of the beautiful suburbs of Minneapolis. It is just a stone throw distance from a small lake and about 0.7 miles from a way bigger lake. This is where Travis always wanted to live.  It may be a longer drive to his work but with the beautiful neighborhood, he said it’s all worth it.  We have made few steps closer to our dreams. I know that we can’t realize our dreams overnight.  It takes hardwork, perseverance, determination and yes it takes time.  And we are conditioned to have just that.

This entire experience has given me enough transformation.  Three days of cleaning and still counting earned me the title of being domesticated.  I now understand when they say that the home is what brings pride to a wife.  I am proud of what I have done although I haven’t cooked yet and there is a mountain pile of clothes to sort, I have done enough to please Travis and most of all myself.

Tomorrow is going to be another day for me and I plan to start it by attending mass in church.  Luckily, the Catholic church is just 0.2 miles away from our place and it has a daily mass schedule at 8am.  Just about time after Travis leave for work.  And the rest of the day will be spent cleaning or relaxing and enjoying the freedom that I have all been yearning for.  It is just a wonderful feeling waking up not to noises but to the sound of birds chirping outside our window.   Freedom is just sweet!

Minnesota has been known as The Land of 10,000 Lakes and that is no exaggeration. In fact, Minnesota for real has 11,842 lakes over 10 acres in size. In warmer months like this, outdoor recreation often involves water. Weekends and summer vacations to family cabins in the numerous Minnesota lakes are a way of life for many residents. These activities involves water sports like water skiing, boating, canoeing and fishing. More than 36% of Minnesotans fish.

Last weekend, I made my first attempt to discover why a lot of people get hooked with this hobby called fishing. Travis and I bought a combination Angling license (husband and wife) online for only $26. Individual license will cost you $18 for residents.  Licenses are also available to purchase for non-residents.  Here are the different types of fishing license and its corresponding fees: LICENSES and FEES

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Last weekend, Travis and I spent quality time together seeing places.  We explored the places where Travis was raised and spent his growing years.  We went to the western suburbs of Minnetonka, Excelsior, Mound, Spring Park and even farther west to Watertown.  It was not my first time to visit the area except for Watertown.  Travis and I drove to it last year after we attended the Budke-Jorgenson Reunion.  This trip was different though because we had more time to stop and find our way without the fear of being lost.   Read the rest of this entry »

I have decided to get a new look without changing my hair and clothes. As you might have noticed, I changed the theme on my site. It is a theme called “Flawless Imperfection” by Colleen Chard. I am very much impressed of the neat layout and design which features my favorite butterflies and not much else. The name of the theme is inspired by this quote, “Better to do something imperfectly than to do nothing flawlessly. – Robert Schuller”.

Finally, I was able to sort my blogroll and links. Of course, I have included the pages of my favorite people who never failed to visit my site and leave a comment. If you want to be included in the list or if I missed you out and want your site to be linked, just leave me a comment below and I’ll make sure to add you. I don’t need to know you to be included in the link, a brief introduction will do.

I hope you like it and please feel at home on my site. Do come again!

After a heartbreaking incident last weekend, I thought I managed to move on.  But it seems that I still couldn’t forget what happened.  I’m still hurting inside and I don’t know when things will be better.  I know eventually they will.  I tried to do the usual things and it somehow helped me a little bit.  But when I’m alone and missing, the pain would surface again.

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Wow! I didn’t notice that it has been at least two months since my last post. I certainly owe everyone an apology for not updating my blog. I should have brought the laptop which belongs to Travis so I can easily do blogging at ease and do the usual stuff I work with even when I was in the Netherlands. Unfortunately, I didn’t do it so while I was gone, not only did I have to scramble against Windows 98 but I was also preoccupied.

There are lots of stories to tell but a person like me who has got a poor memory will have trouble what happened on which day. I will try as much as possible to recall those activities that I did and blog about them by the help of the few pictures that I took. In the next few days, I will be talking about them and also about my short 2 week vacation in Mexico.

Now that I’m back and springing back to reality, I will try to update my blog as much as I can. Thank you to all those friends who never fail to remember me. I treasure you dearly in my heart.

The internet has evolved and we are in the era of blogging when people write their thoughts and the happenings about their lives. I must admit I have made a couple attempts at joining the flow but I seem to be washed ashore. But this time, I have to take on to the challenge Travis (my husband) has given me when he purchased this domain for me. I may not be a hell of a writer but I will write from my heart.

Could this be just another attempt? Or is this really a new beginning? Join me as I continue to live a life away from home, face challenges that come my way and accept that growing up (or should I say growing old) is not easy but is still worthwhile.

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Things have been pretty busy with me for the past weeks since that week of Thanksgiving. I had a very wonderful time with my sister-Rosarie visiting us here in Jacksonville. Each moment was precious. From cooking breakfast with her to St. John’s Town Center to simply laying in bed talking about anything and everything… it was just amazing being reconnected to my sister again. Now I get to realize the great and wonderful feeling to have someone to share everything with. With her being around, I get to put make-up on my face once again, dressing up nicely and being confident. But most of all, showing off my cooking skills was the big part of it. hehehe! The three-day period of us being together was short but it was definitely worth it. I am looking forward to spending more time with her. When she left, all that’s left was me and Travis. The condo seemed quiet and the stillness of the place is very much nnoticeable. Of course, I have no one to giggle with as we all know TS is a serious person. Although I share loads of laughter with my hubby, the laughter you share with a sister, a friend is very much different.   Read the rest of this entry »