I get CARRIEd away :)

Sex & The City is my all time favorite television series, bar none. I was so brokenhearted when the show aired it's final season on HBO a few years back, and I could swear I felt like a part of me died with it. I missed the characters, especially Carrie! and I'm not just talking about the fashion, the shoes, the unabashed love for human frailty, the great lines, the green humor, and the futile attempts to happy-ever-afters, but also the men, specifically, Mr. Big! 

I am a huge Mr. Big fan and I was rooting for them until the very end. [I have this scene where Carrie & Big were dancing to Moonriver playing on my mind at this very moment.] I never really found the chemistry between Carrie & Aidan, plus for some reason I just didn't think he was that attractive [until PS I love you].

No one was more thrilled than I was when I found out that they were gonna turn the fab series into a movie, and what got me even more excited was when I found out that Mr. Big was gonna star on it too! The much anticipated movie was released last weekend and there have been mixed opinions from moviegoers and SATC fans alike, ranging from utter disappointment to genuine delight. To each his own right? Nonetheless, this movie was an instant box office with its $55.7 mil premiere. Since, we don't have any good theaters in Zamboanga, I'm planning to watch the film on my trip to Manila on the 9th and I absolutely cannot wait! 

Who would want to miss another few hours experiencing the cosmopolitan high life of these four ladies in NYC, who have become so much a part of us, and whose lives will be something we would wish from time to time that we had, or not. Eventhough their lives are far from parallel to ours, most of us find a little bit of Charlotte, Miranda, Samantha & Carrie in all of us.

As for Carrie, whose fashion sense is both admired and hated, who is viewed as either a fashion icon or a fashion mishap [depending on the occasion], and who was named the #1 Unsexiest woman by Maxim magazine in 2007, but is found to be all kinds of sexy by women all over, her movie wardrobe was just as unpredictable as usual. I have to admit that there are a number of occasions when her style just yells fashion disaster! in stilettos. However, I'm one of those who find more to love, than hate in SJP's style.

A wedding for Carrie huh? Hmmm... Who knew? 

Now about that gown...

Angelina is one hot pregnant momma :)

It a widely accepted fact (in our generation at least) that Angelina Jolie is not just uberrr hot, but also  effortlessly sexy on any given day. I'm not much of an Angelina fan, although I do agree that she a whole new definition to the term 'sex appeal'.

Her second pregnancy has been very well documented and celebrated by the media. She has become quite noticeably big lately, and Brangelina recently revealed that they are expecting twins very soon. Looking at her baby bump pictures, I can't get over how blooming she has become! She looks genuinely happy, and has a really great glow, not to mention a different aura now [probably due to this pregnancy]. I can definitely say that I don't think I have ever seen Angelina look as beautiful as she does now, pregnant with multiple gestation and expecting any day soon. Then again, I don't think I've seen any pregnant woman expecting twins and due anytime look as good as Angelina. [J.lo was swollen when she was nearing her due date!]

I failed desperately on looking good while I was pregnant with Kaden. I was ugly and swollen beyond belief. That's why I am very envious of hot pregnant mommas like Angelina. I just wish I don't look so hideous on my second time, which God willing, will be very soon. :)

45 days???

"A woman has got to love a bad man once or twice in her life, to be thankful for the good one. "-Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings

In 45 days, I am to kiss my wonderful single life goodbye, and venture into a world I never thought I would one day seriously consider, much more, actually enter: married life. I have read and heard of all the certainties and sureness a woman should be thinking and feeling on the days leading to the wedding, but I wonder how come I'm not as confident as I should be. 

No, I am not uncertain about my feelings because I am more than sure that I love my fiance. My heart is overflowing with love despite our distance, and the mere thought of how wonderful he is makes me sigh and feel all warm inside. There couldn't have been a better half for me, than everything that he already is. But I also know that he will not always be wonderful in my sight, and I won't forever get that fuzzy feeling in my stomach. If I thought we've had trying times before, I know that we were just touching the tip of the iceberg, and there will be bad times, worse times even, one time or another. So, right now I'm laying myself down into a bed I know will not always be full of roses. Why? because I know that whoever I choose to spend my life with, there is no guarantee of a lifetime of bliss and I have realized that there is no other person I would like to lay with in that bed of thorns.

 

45 days into our wedding day, and yet we still don't know for sure where we will be a year from now, or if we will physically be together for good by then. Where's the certainty in that? Long distance relationships (LDRs) are always a struggle. It takes a lot of hard work & constant communication. No matter how much you love the one you're with, there will be temptations, and they always come at your most vulnerable moments, hitting you at your weakest points, and testing your limits. There is no certainty, absolutely none. No guarantees either, even once we're married. 

But there is trust, and in the past years I have come to respect and trust the person my fiance is. I trust that at this point in both our lives we already know that satisfying a curiosities here and there is not worth a lifetime of regret, and that trust can take a lifetime to build but only a second to lose. We both agree that aside from love, we need both trust and respect to make our relationship work. This is something we mutually believe in, and put great importance to in our relationship. I consider myself lucky that I found a person who shares the same values as me on that note. 

When you decide to marry someone, people would ask you how you knew he or she was the one. What makes this one different from all the rest? Why choose this one from all the other willing ones? There are many occasions and reasons that led me to realize that Art is the one I want to spend the rest of my life with, for real. One of which is that I have never had so much respect for any other man, and I love that. I look at him, and I can sincerely say that the person I'm marrying is a good man. I've seen how guys treat the girl their with really well, but treat everybody else like crap. I've never seen this with Art. Not even on his worst days. He is generally kind, not just to me, to my family, to his family, but to everyone around him. At this time, we can see how people try so hard to get ahead of each other, they try to cut corners, and shortchange others for their benefit. I'm not saying everybody else is bad, but I am aware that the kind of honestly and good morale he possesses is a rarity. I have also seen that he is not the kind of person who can deliberately hurt anyone, both physically and emotionally, even when he himself is hurt. I am nowhere close to the person he is, and he makes me want to be a better person in so many ways, without him even asking me to be anything but myself.

Now I'm not trying to say that my fiance is perfect, because he is definitely less than that. ;) Although whatever his shortcomings are, is a topic to be left behind our closed doors. I have come to realize that not one person comes packaged without imperfections, not the person I'm marrying, and especially not me. It was a matter of deciding if I can live with his shortcoming or not. It's wrong to expect people to change, even worse to demand them to. So all I am now is hopeful that we can both come up with a compromise in terms of both our shortcomings, but there are no assurances. So in essence, we're both taking a chance on each other here. 

So yes, I will marry in 45 days certain that I am in love with the person waiting for me at other end of the aisle. There is no one else I'd rather spend the rest of my life loving, struggling, and building dreams upon. But love is not always gonna be enough, it will not always sustain us, and it does not always conquer all. So I am marrying the one I love most with a giant leap of faith. Unsure of what the future holds for us both, but sure that whatever happens we can battle the storms together. Uncertain of many other things, but very certain that we believe in each other enough to trust our happiness in each others hands. 

For the Heavily Laden

Another story about crosses

In a certain village in Umbria (Italy), there lived a man who was always bewailing his lot. He was a Christian, and found the weight of his cross too heavy to bear.

One night, before going to sleep, he begged God to let him change his burden.

That night he had a dream; the Lord led him to a warehouse. "Go ahead and change it," he said. The man saw crosses of all sizes and shapes, with the names of their owners. He picked an average size cross – but when he saw the name of an old friend written on it, he left it aside.

Finally, as God had permitted, he chose the smallest cross he could find.

To his surprise, he saw his own name written on it.

-from Paolo Coelho's blog

There are moments in one's life when we feel that we are at our lowest of lows, and that our burden is too much for a single person to bear. We complain about life being unfair and how we deserve better, or wish we had better. These are the perfect moments to carefully reexamine our lives, look a good look around us, marvel at the blessings in our lives that we almost always fail to take cognizance of, and be thankful for the little things that make us happy on a daily basis that we usually tend to take for granted and view as routine. I have learned after numerous rough patches in my life that it is true, our God is indeed a faithful God, and He will never give us more than what we can handle.

1 Corinthians 10:13 (NIV):"No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it."  

This verse does not expressly say that we will never be given trials beyond what we are capable of handling. It says that he won't let us be tempted beyond what we can bear. But, the interpretation of bible verses are often subjective. You have may a different one but that's my own.

These are also the moments when most of us feel that we have no one else to turn to, so we turn to God. As if for our last resort. Sad as it may sound, that's how most of us are, from passive christians to nominal christians to sunday christians. We start being more earnest in our prayers and becoming devout christians in times of trials & trouble, and then later become complacent when things get better for us. I have to admit, that sadly, I am sometimes guilty of this. :( 

When we feel that we are at our lowest point, we really should take time to look around us. We should open our eyes and widen the periphery of our vision to include the rest of the world, instead of being focused on our own burden. This may be the only time when we will find that instead of the burden that we perceived it to be, it is actually a blessing from God in disguise. This may be the only time when we can embrace what is given to us and celebrate the goodness of the Lord, and how despite our shortcomings and our failures, He still manages to favor us by choosing the path that would enable us to be stronger people, as well as faithful believers, and be thankful that as much as we tend to stray from Him ala prodigal son, He still finds it in His merciful heart to choose just the right trial that will make us better persons/christians and draw us closer to Him. 

2 Corinthians 12:9(NIV): "But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me."

Most of the time I do feel thankful at how trials are there to remind me that I'm only human, and everything that I have now is temporary and can be taken away from me at any given time. Sometimes, we tend to feel invincible when everything is going our way, but we need to be reminded that we are not in total control of our lives, God is. Everything that is happening in our lives is but a minute detail in His grand scheme of things. So we can stop obsessing. It's not all about us. Next time we complain about our cross, we might want to check if we should be thanking and praising Him for it instead. This is something I want to be more conscious about everyday, especially when I start to obsess about trivialities, and it's pretty effective when I do it, I tell myself, "Mariben, it isn't just about you." and I start reminding myself of how blessed I am. That's my little secret, so I always end up thanking instead of complaining, and smiling instead of grumbling. [But of course that's after a few minutes of whining]

Let me share one quote that may be cliche but there's a lot of truth in it. From the french author who became known for his epigram, the more things change, the more they stay the same.

"Some people are always grumbling because roses have thorns. I am thankful that thorns have roses." – Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Kar

Maxi Dresses

About a month ago, I was so infatuated with maxi dresses. I couldn't wait to get one for myself and much to my delight I found a variety of maxi dresses at H&M in Langham's Place! 

As I tried them on inside the dressing room, I sadly realized that while they may look great on other people, especially hollywood celebrities, they're just not flattering for my 5"1 built! :( 

So I had to walk out of H&M without a Maxi dress, but forever wondering if I should have given it a chance...

On wedding bands

Art & I went to Hong Kong 3 weeks ago. Our main purpose for the trip was to find our wedding bands. We had about two months left till our wedding day and we still didn't have wedding bands, since it was difficult to find a design we both liked. Tiffany's at Rustans needed a 6-month notice to order the plain platinum band design we wanted since they didn't have our sizes in-stock. We figured that by going straight to Hong Kong, we'd not only get them cheaper at a direct franchise of Tiffany & Co., but we'd also get the chance to look at Cartier rings [which are no longer being sold in Manila] for other options, just in case. 

I've gotten a lot of advice to just get an eternity ring for myself, while Art gets his plain band. But I kinda want matching wedding rings, even if it sounds old fashioned. Ha! I still have a bone for old fashion-ness, and I'm not talking vintage here! :p Like I don't want to have pictorials with the groom before the wedding ceremony because it will lose the element of surprise between him and me when it's time to walk down the aisle. Hehe.

I mean, I do want an eternity ring. I love looking at diamonds on my finger, who doesn't right? But because of my career (*ehem), I just want to have a simple wedding band that I can wear everyday, especially in the hospital. I also walk around a lot and take tricycles around the city, so I don't want to have an attention grabbing ring on my finger. It's bad enough that I don't get to wear my gorgeous engagement ring on a daily basis. :( Hey, it's not like I have a 3 carat engagement ring, it's simple but it does command attention and I'm trying to avoid that. 

Back to the wedding band talk. We were both amazed at how cheap jewelry was in Hong Kong! It's a good thing because from then on, I'm gonna be thinking twice and thrice before I buy any more jewelry locally. The best thing is that, you can haggle! We walked along Nathan Road in MongKok and went into every jewelry store we passed by. We've had bad experiences from demanding sellers, and one particular very demanding woman who got so upset that we didn't buy jewelry from her store. "You no good, not serious buyer." Wtf, we were serious buyers, we just didn't like the designs in her shop. I had to admit though, that she had tempting prices. 

After going through a lot of Fooks and other jewelry stores, Art fell in love with a pair of wedding bands at TSL Jewelry. It's very rare that I see him get excited over something, so I decided that our wedding bands should be his choice. :) He got so excited over them that we weren't able to do much haggling this time, because he already exclaimed that we're getting the rings. I have to admit the ring looked perfect on his finger, although it looked a little bulky for my thin fingers. But I liked the uniqueness of the design. It was simple and elegant. So, even if we weren't even halfway down Nathan Road and even if we didn't get the chance to go to Tiffany's & Cartier at Tsim Sha Tsui, we struck a close deal with the very warm salespeople of TSL, and managed to save a little bit from not buying our platinum Tiffany bands. :)

The ring doesn't quite match my engagement ring, so I wouldn't be able to wear them on one finger like most married women, but I don't mind. :) I love our rings! And just like Art, I can't wait to wear them. 

About the three layered eternity ring I was eyeing, the salespeople at TSL were right. About a year from now will be our first wedding anniversary! Yey. I'm excited! :) 

I got Inked!

I was expecting it to hurt like hell, but to my surprise, it was nowhere close to giving birth without an epidural! I mean, I would be lying if I said it didn't hurt at all because it, but surprisingly, it's not as bad as other people claim it is. Then again, maybe it just depends on one's tolerance level for pain.

I wasn't planning on getting a tattoo that day, I just decided to pass by Robinson's Galleria after my session at the Facial Care Centre which was just close by. When I got to the mall, I went straight to Gene Testa's shop at the new wing to inquire about navel piercing, and ended up getting one on the spot. I also asked about getting a tattoo since I've been toying with the idea for a while now. It turned out that he was going to be out of town the next day until the day I leave for Zamboanga. So I had to decide right there if I really wanted to get one or not. I figured, I better get one while he was there and before I completely chicken out. Talk about on-the-spot decision making!

Gene was a recommended by my friend, Matt, who's had several tattoos done by him already. I'm kind of paranoid about the sterility of the equipments used and the possibility of getting an infection. Looking at Gene's clientele, I decided he's definitely not one of those tattoo artists I should be worried about, and if I were to get inked, I wouldn't want it to be done by anyone else but him. :)

So I called Art who was then out firing with Kenneth & Rico, to come over and join me. Aside from giving moral support, I was hoping he'd get a tattoo with me so that it'll be more fun and memorable, but much to my disappointment, he was too scared that it might hurt and didn't have the guts [yet, daw]. He's gonna completely deny it if he reads this, but I have evidence of the look on his face while I was getting my tattoo. He looked half grossed out and half like he wanted to cry, while of course trying to look brave. His effort to convince both me and Gene that he really wanted to get inked as well but just didn't know what design to put at that moment was actually cute. Endearing because I love him, but very funny. 

A lot of people who's had tattoos say that getting one is very addicting, because as soon as you get your first you can't wait to get your second, then your third, and then more. According to Gene, most of the time the most difficult stage is when you have to decide whether or not you should get a tattoo. Once you have, then it's easy to keep 'em coming. But hey don't worry mom, I don't intend to get a sleeve or something outrageous like that, and not because I got my first tattoo and my navel pierced in one night, doesn't make me a rebellious daughter, so don't panic. I'm still your little girl. :p

I can't promise that this will be my last tattoo though. Those white inked tattoos look really interesting. Hmmm...