And Now for Some Relaxing Stuff

Early April my family spent a long weekend over in Shangri-La Mactan.

One of the best weekends we've spent. The resort was beautiful, the beach and the pools were nice, and the food was great. It was the perfect weekend getaway.

So now for some highlights.

• Black Pepper Squid in Cowrie Cove. This was the best meal I had in the resort. I'm serious. It's just the best. It was delicious, the squid was not tough, and the pepper gave just the right amount of oomph.
• The man-made (?) beach. Not sure if it was man-made, but I loved spending five to six hours a day there. My parents and I would arrive around nine or ten in the morning, and we'd leave there around three in the afternoon. Then I'd spend time with my wife in one of the pools, since she doesn't want to get tan.
• The service. Quality hotel with quality service. Worth every centavo paid. I never felt that the greetings the staff gave me were forced in any way. They were all warm and friendly.
• The relaxing mood. What else can you do there but relax? Wake up early. Have some buffet breakfast. Get back to the room to freshen up. Hit the beach. Grab some lunch in the beach. Get back to the room. Go to the pool. Have dinner. Sleep. Lather, rinse, repeat.
• The free toiletries. L'Occitane branded soaps, shampoos, and lotions. Wow.

Of course there were some lowlights.

• My daughter got sick with tonsilitis. The doctor's fee was expensive, and my wife and I got quite a scare until after she got checked up.
• The price. Yes it was worth every penny, but that doesn't hide the fact that it was expensive to stay there. Had it been cheaper I would have asked my mom to spend an extra day or two more.
• Inaccessibility. My wife and I never left the resort. We could have taken the shuttle or the taxi into Cebu City, but the resort was pretty far away. So we just bummed out at the resort.

That's about it. It's a shame I had to write about it only now, a few weeks after we spent our vacation. Maybe next time when we go on another vacation I will write about it as soon as I return to the "real world."

Out.

No Comparison

When you hear older people say that they had it tougher during their time, when you hear that our generation (and the succeeding generations) are "quitters" because they never experienced anything harsh, is it fair? Can you really compare it?

I think not. Times change, and situations change also. You cannot compare how life was like when you started working twenty years ago to the time I am experiencing now. Why? Because the people that surround me are not the same as the people that surrounded you.

So why I am writing this? Because I am honestly nearing the end of my straw. I don't consider myself a quitter, but I don't consider myself stupid either. My emotional state is being greatly affected by things I can easily point out, does this make me weak if I want to cut ties with it? No.

The only thing preventing me from shedding this source of negativity is the fact that I haven't found an exit plan yet.

But another thing is making me wonder, perhaps it's all me? My lack of self-confidence, my lack of a backbone, could those be making me this neurotic person I am now? Do I think too much?

I have no idea, but I do know that based on how I see things, I was set in this path with very little room for error, and very high expectations. Either from myself or from others. But it isn't helping me out one bit.

Perhaps I bit off more than I could chew? But even if I did, I asked for a way out as early as January, only the asnwer to my request left me stuck between a rock and a hard place.

So I guess I'm a quitter, if I push through with my plans, right? Nope. Because I never quit on my family, and I am looking for better opportunities so we can live a better life. I've been patient the past five years, always being nice and trying to negotiate for things I feel I earned. I never got them, so I guess that makes me stupid. I've been denied at least four times I can remember, and I still stuck to my guns.

I just need a new opportunity.

Out.

Stuck in a Quandary

Quandary - "A difficult situation; a practical dilemma."

I'm stuck in a quandary. I've computed my family's monthly budget. I've computed it with all major, mandatory, monthly expenses (including putting some money in our savings account). The sad truth is we are not earning enough.

This is not right. I promised myself when I was younger that once I started working I would earn (or make, if I decide to go the entrepreneur route) enough that I would not have to compromise the lifestyle I grew up in. Neither will I compromise the lifestyle I wish to give my wife and daughter.

Don't take me wrong, we don't live any extravagant lifestyle. I just want to be able to take my family out every weekend for a good time and eat some good food. I want to be able to take my wife out for dinner once in a while. I want to have enough spare cash available that I can buy some stuff I want, whatever that may be. And I want to be able to pay for whatever needs my daughter may have - education, health expenses, hobbies.

Right now I can't do that. Even if my wife and I combined our earnings, it's not enough.

What sucks is my wife already has a part-time job. It's stressing her out so much that I find it frustrating that I can't even be the main breadwinner in the family.

On the bright side, I didn't factor in my wife's income from her part-time job in our budget. Meaning there could be a little more leeway. But I do not find that acceptable.

I want to earn or make enough money that my wife and I don't need to look for other sources of income. I want to earn or make enough money that we can afford to live totally independent, with enough spare cash to take nice holidays, buy cool stuff, or learn some hobbies.

The only way to do that is to find a better paying job, or move abroad. And I am seriously considering both options.

Out.