[827] Looking Back at 2019 and New Year Resolutions

I have to be honest. I've always been a negative person. And a lot of events from the past few years have made me a more jaded person than usual.

I've lost my faith, I've become more temperamental, and yet at the same time I'm learning to be resilient. I'm learning to be patient, I'm learning to be more grateful with the things I have in life.

It has been an incredible journey, to be honest. There are plenty things I would want to re-do in my life. Since I cannot do that, all I have left is to keep moving forward and keep forcing myself to become a better person. With or without religion, I still cannot say.

As for resolutions, I have none. I've never been able to follow through with whatever weak resolutions I had before. I'm more impulsive, spur-of-the-moment kind of person. And it works for me, at least health-wise. I've dropped to 90kg these past few days (before the holiday feasting) with the help of intermittent fasting. I've managed to control and reduce my weight and I really could not believe I was able to do that.

I'm discovering a lof of new things about myself. Things that I hope will further make me a better person, a better father, a better son, a better husband. You name it. It is an interesting journey. I wish I could be a more positive person who doesn't give as much f*cks as I do. It will take time.

Happy new year everyone.

Out.

[826] Reflecting on 2019

The end of December is a few days away and I haven't posted anything in over a month. So I'll post something today, just so I can say I posted something on December.

It's been a very interesting 2019. Like I said in an Instagram post, I've gotten more jaded as the years have passed. I have, however, also learned to persevere and be more resilient nowadays.

Yes there are weak times when I want to give up. There are times when I will indulge myself in a pity party. Usually I try to talk myself out of my funk. Remind myself of the gif of Mr. Krabs playing a sad song in the world's smallest violin.

So many things have happened this 2019. I have to say overall I've become a better person. Of course, that's my opinion of myself and I honestly don't know if others feel the same.

Out.

[825] Remembering My Lola Jinny

Three years ago my paternal grandmother passed away.

I guess I was lucky that I was the very first grandchild. I got spoiled a lot, and my Lolo Pabling and Lola Jinny even took me with them to the USA one time. Dad unfortunately had to go and had to pay for his own ticket.

I do miss my Lola Jinny. I miss all my grandparents, but today on her 3rd death anniversary I will reminisce about Lola Jinny.

I'm glad she lived long enough to meet Martina, and I'm even happier that Martina was old enough to form decent memories with her. She would always call Martina her little princess since at that age Martina was still a big fan of Disney princesses.

However old age caught up to my grandmother and her health started deteriorating. A few weeks before she passed away we visited her in Lucena. I think this was either a few days before or after her 96th birthday.

At her weakened state she had trouble staying awake and sitting up but when she saw Martina I was very surprised she found the strength to speak. It was just a shame she wasn't the same person and her voice was very hoarse because Martina became frightened and left the room. I stayed with Lola Jinny for a few minutes, enjoying what time I had with her while she was awake.

Had I known that was the last time I would see her I probably would have talked to her a lot more. Unfortunately for me I was very naive and optimistic that she was regaining her strength and that she was slowly working her way to at least being able to eat meals in the dining room of her house. Alas, it would not be.

She passed away on November 18, 2016. I was at work when I found out. My mom, dad, and I drove to Lucena that weekend and we left dad there to be with his siblings. We came back for the funeral on a Tuesday.

Out.

[824] Kobe Bryant

I just saw that this post would be my 824th post and I instantly connected that number to NBA legend Kobe Bryant, who wore both numbers 8 and 24 during his career with the Los Angeles Lakers.

Out.

[823] New Shoes!!!

Last November 2, 2019 I bought a pair of New Balance Fresh Foam Vero Racer Running Shoes in a black and gold colorway. Today I took a brisk, recorded morning walk and did my usual pace of around 10 minutes per kilometer. I last did my brisk morning walk around August so the pace is still there. And surprisingly, so is my stamina.

I've been in the market for a new pair of walking shoes since my old Pumas are very worn down and have holes near where my pinky toes are. They lasted two good years. I was planning on checking out the local Payless in Power Plant Mall since they sell those relatively cheap Champion sneakers that were one of my very first pairs of walking shoes. Sure they didn't have advanced sneaker technology but they were light, had great grip, and served the purpose as a walking shoe.

My family and I decided to go window shopping and we ended up in Planet Sports where I decided to look at the shoes New Balance had to offer. The pair I bought were actually the very first pair of sneakers I got drawn to not only because of the colorway but also because it looks good if I wear it as a casual sneaker.

Anyway we find out that if I use a certain bank's credit card the products in the store are discounted, with New Balance giving 20% discount. Luckily for me I also have that credit card. So we decided to look around first and have lunch before going back to buy the shoes.

We also got Martina a new pair of sneakers for her PE in school. The brand we got for her gave 25% discount when using the credit card. So basically I went over budget for a shoe with better features. I hope this pair will last me for at least two years.

Out.

[822] Health

I'm still recovering from a bug. Not sure if it was the flu or not, or if I actually managed to beat the bug before it got worse, but yeah. I'm still recovering. Yesterday was the worst. I wasn't able to sleep well. My back hurt, my joints were sore.

Now I'm feeling a lot better because I managed to rest and take some over-the-counter medicine yesterday. Unfortunately, it's my wife's turn. She was feeling unwell when she got home from work yesterday and it unfortunately got worse earlier this morning.

I guess it started last week when our daughter was sick. Must be a bug going around. Anyway it's always a good idea to take care of yourself because getting sick sucks.

Out.

[821] Quality Over Quantity

Once again I haven't been posting as much as I want to. Basically my reasons for my relative silence are as follows.

1. Too lazy. Nothing to write, didn't want to post anything rambling. Tired of updating my weight or what's happening to me health-wise, and I didn't want to do more generic ramblings about a dream car garage or tiny house plans.
2. Silence is golden. I've come to notice that thanks to the internet and social media a lot more people have been posting their opinions online, whether warranted or not. There's a line I read somewhere to the effect of, "freedom of speech does not mean freedom from consequences." I'd rather not post anything that might be misinterpreted by others. Times have changed.
3. I'd rather post quality insights about my life. Right now I haven't had any major insights I'd want to share. Life's been chugging along, I've been trying to live and grow as a human being. The usual.

And there you have it. Let's just say this I'm posting this now just so I have an October entry. Who knows, maybe this'll get my creative juices flowing so I can start blogging again. We'll see.

Out.

[820] Why I Play Video Games

I play video games. I play them to relax, have fun, and while away the time.

I prefer single player games. I have little to no desire to interact with anyone online unless someone I know invites me to play.

Do I like to be challenged in the games? Sometimes. There are also times when I'm losing in NBA 2K18 that I will finish the game and try to at least bring the score down.

Oftentimes I rage quit. Again, I play to relax. If I feel that I'm getting pissed off because I'm losing or because the enemy had a lucky head shot, I rage quit. Some people will call me a sore loser. I am. That's why I play single player, because I want to relax and also win.

I also save scum. A lot. As often as possible. This is a video game, not real life. I'd rather have multiple chances to redo something until I get the desired effect. Again, video game. I'm trying to enjoy.

So yeah, I'm not really as bothered as I was before about how I play. I used to try the 100% completion, hardest difficulty, iron man modes but I would just get pissed off and frustrated. That's not why I play.

Out.

[819] 95 kilograms

I'm finally confident enough to claim that my weight is now hovering in the 94 kg to 96 kg range. While it may not be as fast as other people who do intermittent fasting, I am happy with the results because I managed to control my weight.

Last Friday I decided to ramp it up a bit more by downloading the Zero Fasting Tracker app. What it basically does is it helps me keep track of my fasts. Unfortunately I downloaded it just as we were going to Lucena for the Niyogyugan Festival 2019. This basically meant I wasn't hitting my 16:8 fasting.

It wasn't that bad since I was still getting used to constantly updating the app. Now that I'm back in Metro Manila I've gone back to my 16:8 fasts. So far I've been going over the usual 16 hours, usually by 30 minutes or so.

It is actually normal since I usually eat between 11am to 7pm. And we're usually done eating around 6:30pm.

I've also bought some yellow sweet potatoes I was supposed to only eat at dinner. However my mom has been cooking good food lately so the best I can do is just eat little portions of her food.

Hopefully developing a habit of updating the app will help me focus more on my intermittent fasting and help me get my weight to hover in the 92 kg - 95 kg range. We shall see.

I still have no firm goals with this and am just going with the flow.

Out.

[818] Ramping Up

I've decided to do my best to intermittent fast everyday. Past few weeks I was successfully doing my 16:8 IF weekdays with Saturdays and Sundays being my "cheat days." There was something I noticed.

Around Friday I would be at around 95kg. After the weekend I would be around 97kg. That meant whenever I ate breakfast (plus eating out and enjoying it) I would gain what weight I lost.

This weekend I'm trying to maintain my IF even during the weekends. More importantly I'm trying my best to stick to my portion control. I'd rather gain one kilogram of weight and lose two a week rather than just moving back and forth. Two steps forward one step back is acceptable, though I would rather just keep moving forward. So we'll see.

It took me quite a while to make IF a habit, and hopefully I can keep it up and make the weekends part of my IF and portion control habit. I don't expect to be able to do this immediately but hopefully in a week or so I'll be able to maintain my weight and finally normalize at a weight well below 95kg.

Out.

[817] Appearances

I just realized that some people I consider friends probably see me in a way that bothers me. Specifically I guess they assume things about me, either based on how I interact with them or whatever stuff I post on social media. And through those things they come up with their opinions on me.

And sometimes when they let me know what opinion they have on me it bothers me, though to be honest why should I let it bother me? It depends on how much of a friend I consider them. It also depends on how much I should value their advice with how I see how they treat me.

Maybe I'm getting too onion-skinned or maybe I'm just becoming annoying to him but I did notice that recently I've been slightly offended with the way he interacts with me in our group chats. I honestly cannot assume how he's feeling or how he's saying it since there are no emotions included in words. So I can only interpret it the way I read it, and recently it seems hostile.

I've been trying to think if it's my fault, sometimes chatting too much or maybe being the annoying person in the chat. Or maybe it's because I've been acting too much of the fool. I honestly don't know.

I've tried asking more questions so I can better understand everyone but I guess it just makes me seem like I've been living a sheltered life and that I really know jack shit about the world. And honestly it pisses me off that some people are starting to treat me rathery condescendingly from my point of view.

So I shall deal with this problem with how I usually deal with negative things in my life. I'll just cut it off. Not totally, as it could be just me being too sensitive.

Why don't I confront him you might ask? Because I really don't like confronting people. I don't really want to open up and say that he's been acting hostile lately. Might open up more shit than I want to deal with.

So I retreat, metaphorically speaking. Like with things I don't like I'll just avoid them. I know who has my back and who doesn't, and right now it looks like he doesn't have my back.

Out.

[816] Motivation?

I have to get this off my chest. I will try to be as vague as possible with the details. Also this is from what I understood based on accounts of others.

A few weeks ago some kid apparently told my daughter that he didn't believe she had Netflix at home because she was, and I quote, "poor." Good thing my daughter was mature enough to say she didn't care what he thought, but it basically upset me.

That kid is basically a rich spoiled brat. He was lucky enough to be born to parents who earn really fucking great in this country. They can afford to be in debt paying off car loans and housing loans. I can't even afford to be in debt.

It pissed me off a lot. It still does. I have friends who are way better off financially than me, or the family of that kid, and they never, ever said anything to demean me because of my financial standing. They treated me with respect and as an equal. In fact I would even proudly say that those friends of mine treat me like a brother from another mother. An immature brother, though that's for another post.

As I've grown I've learned to prioritize things in life. My priority now is to give the best possible education to my daughter. And yes there are so many luxuries I have decided to sacrifice just to give this education to her. And to hear this little asshole call my daughter poor really stings me. No, don't give me the argument of, "he's just a kid, he didn't mean anything." Bullshit. Kids speak their minds and they say what is in their hearts. If that little shit had a heart. I may eventually forgive him, but I will never forget what he said.

I will still do my best to provide the best education and upbringing I can give my daughter. With the help of my wife we will teach our daughter to be strong, independent, compassionate, smart, and kind. I will also teach my daughter not to take shit from anyone.

No matter how rich you are in life it does not give you the excuse to belittle people who aren't as well off as you. This world needs more compassion, it does not need arrogant little shits who will just make this world a worse place.

Out.

[815] Thirty-nine Years Old

Today I turn 39. It's been quite a journey for me these past few years. It has been some of the most challenging times in my life, and I mean that in the most positive way I can.

I have been doing way more growing up and maturing since maybe 2017 because of events beyond my control. I may have changed my beliefs, and I may have started acting differently, but I am really glad that I am still learning and persevering through all this.

I personally feel I have achieved a great deal of things. I have no desire to compare what I've been through to others, nor do I have any desire to say I have achieved more than others. I have simply learned a lot of things. For some what I've gone through and how I've grown will be shallow, but I really couldn't care less.

So happy birthday to myself. I honestly wish I still have more time left in this world because I have so many more goals I want to achieve and so many more moments I want to experience.

Out.

[814] Birthday Wishes 2019

As I commonly do when my birthday comes up I like to post some wishes. I don't know if I've done this before but I'll be posting some non-material stuff. So without further ado...

• Strength of will and peace of mind. I used to pray everyday this. I never got it. So I've been trying to achieve this on my own. And no, I'm not turning this into one of those religious "your greater being has helped you because you helped yourself." I stopped believing in that years ago. You want something you do something to get it.
• Happiness and kindness. Who doesn't want to be happy right? As for kindness, I want to be the kind of person who other people will consider as a kind person, not as a person who acts kind.

Anyway enough of the serious stuff. On to the greedy stuff.

• A classic Volkswagen Beetle and the tools I need to work on it. I still dream of owning one.
• A nice two-bedroom condominium unit and two parking slots in a good place in Makati. Somewhere near both where my wife works and where my daughter goes to school. So in case of bad weather they don't have to travel far to get home.
• A pair of Puma Clyde Court Disrupt basketball shoes.
• A Dean MLX Floyd electric guitar. And to go with this a nice, small Marshall amp to plug it in to.

And that's it, I guess. Honestly I'm not really wishing for anything material, just the serious ones. I've been realizing a lot of stuff and I've been doing a lot of growing up these past few years. My maturity is almost reaching the maturity of a 23-year old while my body is nearing 39.

Life goes on.

Out.

[813] My Thoughts on the Lakers and Pelicans Trade

So the Lakers have finally acquired Anthony Davis via trade. I'm not really surprised, and I honestly think it was a win for both teams. However, I'm not a basketball expert. I'm just a casual fan. Since this is my blog I will still be posting my thoughts on this trade.

Why do I think it is a win-win trade? Well the Lakers got AD, who could be (in theory right now) a very good complement to LeBron. It's pretty obvious they are in win-now mode to take advantage of the remaining years of LeBron's prime. Adding AD also makes the Lakers more attractive to free agents. I believe they can still sign one more superstar with their remaining cap space. Though if you ask me they might be better off spending that cap space for two or three really good role players. Plus I won't be surprised if they get to sign one or two ring-chasing vets for the veteran minimum.

As for the Pelicans, they get a good group of relatively young NBA players to build around they're first overall pick in this year's draft, who I'm guessing will be Duke's Zion Williamson. They get good defenders in Lonzo Ball and Josh Hart, and a possible swiss-army knife player in Brandon Ingram. Plus they also get this year's 4th overall pick. And I believe the Lakers will still owe them a few first round picks in the future so they have those to look forward to as well.

The Lakers got what they wanted, and so did the Pelicans. The trade made the Lakers a legit championship contender this coming season since Golden State has to deal with a lot of free agent AND injury issues on their end.

The Pelicans get to build around their youth, but probably stay competitive as well if they decide to keep Jrue Holiday.

This makes me excited to see what will happen in the upcoming NBA season.

Out.

[812] Photographs

I got into photography around 2005. A good friend who I worked with got me started. He loaned me some film SLRs and when I got the flames stoked I eventually saved up to buy my own film SLR.

Soon my mom gave me a gift, a Canon 30D DSLR. Eventually because the CMOS sensor got fungal bloom I switched to point and shoot cameras. A Panasonic LX5, then a Canon G16. It was during these times I decided DSLRs were too bulky and my purpose for owning a camera had changed.

Nowadays I usually rely on my smartphone's camera. The LG G4 I have has a pretty decent camera anyway. And it's always with me.

When I started photography I wanted an "artistic outlet." I was learning the rule of thirds, learning composition, and trying to find unique ways of framing photographs. Eventually I started figuring out shutter speeds, aperture settings, white balance, and other technical stuff.

Once my daughter was born the reason I took photographs started evolving as well. It was less artistic expression and more capturing memories. Something I still believe in up to now.

I have recorded probably hundreds of gigabytes of still and moving pictures. Some of them still have a bit of artistic expression, but most of them now are all about capturing a specific moment.

I most likely will not remember every detail I have experienced in my life, but I hope that seeing pictures from way back will still remind me of what happened in that specific moment.

Don't get me wrong, I still try to add whatever I learned from taking pictures before to what I do now. And I still remember the greatest advice I got from my dad's friend who is a pretty well-known local photographer. "Why did you take the photo?" He refused to critique my shots if my answer was "because I wanted to." There had to be a reason why I took that specific photo, and why it was taken that way.

Nowadays I take the photo to remember that specific instance. I don't want to completely forget everything when I'm older and my memory starts failing me.

I don't want to forget friends and family who have moved on.

And that is why I still take photos.

Out.

[811] John Wick 3: Parabellum

Last weekend I watched John Wick 3: Parabellum while my wife and daughter watched Aladdin.

John Wick 3 was amazing. There were some scenes I found a bit too violent and/or gory, but it didn't take away from the overall experience. I totally enjoyed the movie.

I was really happy seeing Mark Dacascos in the movie. I know he's been in some movies before, but I never really saw those movies. I knew him best as the Chairman from Iron Chef: America. Seeing his character in the movie had my imagination run wild trying to tie up his character from Iron Chef: America to the one in John Wick.

There was also a fair amount of funny moments, in the sense that they were trying to break the overall mood of the movie and give the audience a breather. Sort of how Avengers: Endgame had some funny moments in an overall intense (I can't think of any other word I can use to describe it) situation.

Anyway that's as much spoilers as I can say, if you can consider that a spoiler. It was a great movie, but there were some really violent parts that I cringed at. I appreciated the acting of everyone involved, they really got me buying in to their characters. I was either really sympathetic to them or I really wished they would get what's coming to them.

Also a special shout out to Boban Marjanovic, the NBA giant who had a scene in the movie. I hope he continues to show up in other movies. He could have a great career in specialized giant roles. Can't wait to see if he can do comedy.

Out.

[810] Avengers: Endgame

My wife and I watched Avengers: Endgame in Greenbelt 3 yesterday. We went to the 10:30 am showing, got decent seats in the side, and enjoyed the whole movie.

It was an amazing movie that I think did a great job tying loose ends and possibly setting up the Marvel cinematic universe for more movies moving forward.

I won't write about any potential spoilers, though I have read my fair share. Willingly, of course. I read that article about the guy who got back at someone who spoiled Infinity War by spoiling Endgame and it took him almost one year to do it. There were plenty spoilers there.

My wife cried a few times during the movie. Good job on the directors for hitting the right notes, because I also got teary eyed in some parts.

I just wish my wife and I were more active watching Marvel movies because I'm pretty sure we missed a whole lot of "inside jokes."

Great movie, I might watch it again if it's still showing this coming weekend.

Out.

[809] Numbering Fixed

I found the culprit. I missed naming post 788.

I made post # 787 then the next post became post # 789. And it took me this long to figure out I was off by one post.

So this post is just to make sure I have the right count again.

Out.

[808 -- again?] Numbering Issue and Health

While checking the blogger dashboard it appears I only have 807 posts, yet this was supposed to be post number 809. So either I made a mistake counting or I deleted a previous post. I won't be trying to figure it out again.

Anyway I've been forcing myself to do some physical activity everyday. Usually going on 20 to 30 minute walks. However I realized that while this may be good physical activity to improve my stamina I have done nothing to improve my strength.

This morning I tried to use my 20 lb kettlebell and do some bicep curls. Being the weakling that I am I only managed to do 4 reps. Per arm. And only two sets. Not only that but when I tried doing overhead tricep extensions with both arms the best I could do was eight. Next set I stopped at six since I was afraid I might drop the kettlebell.

This basically means that I will be adding some arm and maybe shoulder exercises to my daily routine, most likely after I finish with my walk.

As for my skip rope, well I don't do it as often since I enjoy walking around and seeing sights more but I do feel it helped improve my stamina so I will be trying to incorporate it to my morning routine once in a while.

Out.

[808] Desktop PC

I may have to build a desktop PC. I've been using laptops for since late 2009. Unfortunately it may be cheaper to just assemble a desktop.

While I enjoy using less power and having a more portable laptop, the cost of getting a good one here is very expensive. With what I used to purchase my current laptop I could have probably assembled a very powerful desktop unit with two monitors.

Also it's easier to upgrade or repair a desktop. My laptop right now has a dead battery and I cannot afford the two-week downtime to have the battery replaced.

I just need to know if it will be worth it to build a desktop for half the price but the power consumed is probably three to five times more than what I'm currently using.

Out.

[807] Finding My Mojo

I keep saying it to myself, over and over. It comes and it goes. I need to find my mojo. I'm not getting any younger and life isn't getting any easier.

Yes I'm learning perseverance. Yes I'm learning resiliency. I'm learning a lot of new things and improving on a lot of old things. As much as I've wanted to give up or find the easy way out, I also know that would be wrong.

So keep soldiering on. Find strength wherever I can find it. Overcome whatever barriers I've set in front of myself and rise above it all.

Out.

[806] My Online Portfolio

Time to start being move active as a 3D artist, so I recently created an artstation account for my online portfolio.

You can find my new online portfolio right here.

My old online portfolio will stay inactive for a few months and I'll probably eventually delete it.

Out.

[805] Two Steps Back

Life's been up and down a lot, and recently I can feel it sliding down. There's just something not right with me and I don't know what it is. I just know I have to power through this and soldier on.

In other news, my laptop's battery died. I can have it fixed but it would take two weeks. I can't afford to not have a laptop for two weeks so I'll have to see what I can do to remedy the situation. And yes, it has crossed my mind to buy a new laptop, not as powerful as this one, as a back up. It is stupid and totally out of my plans.

The other plan is to just ramp up saving money so I can buy a newer, more powerful laptop in the future. Or just assemble a desktop computer. I honestly don't know.

Out.

[804] Rears Its Ugly Head

Well once again another challenge is upon me. I've tried to convince myself to be positive but to be honest it really gets draining trying to find the bright side of things. I'd rather not be specific about it here so I'll just rant about vague things.

I was blindsided by this new turn of events in my life. And like I said above, I'm trying to rationalize that this is a win-win situation. It is affecting me now, in terms of morale and mood. And I am doing my best to stay upbeat.

I guess I could say this could partially be my fault since I was always negative. Maybe the universe just got tired of my non-appreciation of things, I honestly don't know.

Or maybe I'm putting too much thought into things. Maybe this really is just a challenge I have to overcome.

Either way, win or lose, life goes on.

It just gets tiring more often nowadays than when I was younger. And I really, really, really just wish I could give up and just disappear.

Out.

[803] The Journey

There's a nice line in Aerosmith's song Amazing, "Life's a journey, not a destination." That line stuck to me ever since I first heard the song. That's what life is, basically. It's not about what you end up with, which is basically death, it's what you do before you die.

I have to constantly remind myself of this, now more often than ever. I'm facing greater challenges in life and I can honestly say that I am not prepared for this. Resilience, perseverance, and humility are things I can honestly say I didn't develop when I was younger.

I had it easy. I had it good. I lived in an ivory tower thinking everything was like that. As I grew older the tower crumbled and I faced the realities of life. Life isn't harsh, life is life. If you think it's harsh then it is. If you think it's a series of challenges you overcome then it becomes that way.

And that's how I'm trying to survive now. I keep trying to convince myself, and to remind myself, that life is a series of challenges that I will have to overcome one way or another. Giving up wouldn't be a good idea, and neither would running away from things.

This is the hand I've been dealt with recently and I have no choice but to face everything. I have no idea how I'll overcome these challenges but I guess that's also part of the journey.

Lately I've been so tempted to do the wrong things like give up or start acting like more of an asshole. So far I'm glad I cannot bring myself to do these things. I guess I still have some fight left in me. I just hope I don't run out of it.

Out.

[802] Road Works

They finally started working near our house. There's been an ongoing DPWH project since last November 2018 upgrading our drainage systems in the subdivision to prevent flooding in the lower parts. About three weeks ago construction was near the house so I thought it would keep on keeping on.

Fast forward to a few weeks later and there was nothing. The giant concrete pipes were laying in wait and so was I.

Yesterday, a holiday, my family and I went out to attend the last mass of my dad's aunt and we went to the mall after to do some stuff. I got a haircut, had lunch with Maica and Martina, and bought some car care stuff. After dropping off my folks' friend near his condo we drove home.

Lo and behold as we are getting near the house we see the backhoe one house away from ours, already almost done digging up the deep ditches to place the concrete pipes in. What a surprise! Specially considering our cars would be trapped in the garage had they started working in front of the house. So we start scrambling and moving our cars to a new place to park.

Fortunately one my good friends let us park our cars in their garage since they're not really staying in their house as often. It's a big deal since we basically only have to leave one car parked along the streets somewhere.

The last roadworks done near the house took around three weeks from start to finish, meaning they let motorists pass over the new road. So I guess we should be able to park back in our house around March 8 or so. Then once everything is done I heard they will also be fixing the other lane to balance things out I guess. The other roads done with roadwork do look bad since one side has asphalt and is higher than the newly made roads that don't have asphalt yet.

Hopefully they move faster than before because from what I've heard they only have until April to finish everything. We shall see.

Out.

[801] Some Updates on My Life

They say practice makes perfect. That is so true.

I recently posted a video of myself skipping rope. Since then I've skipped sporadically, main reason being that my ankles really started hurting and there was one weekend I casually played basketball and on my very first warm-up jump shot my left achilles tendon (at least I think it was that, it was above my heel, the rear of the foot) started hurting.

It took a few weeks for the left achilles soreness to disappear. I tried doing skip ropes a few times but I did not want to risk actually tearing something since I most likely won't be able to afford medical treatment.

So I tried doing some light kettlebell workouts. I still don't want to go out walking until all road works in our subdivision is done. I'm a creature of habit and deviating from my usual morning walk royally screwed with my motivation to actually go walking.

To make things worse I finally decided to go walking last Saturday with my daughter and I got stung by a "higad" around my nape and neck. The welts are still there, some almost gone and some still pretty big.

Anyway earlier this morning I decided to try skipping rope again and to film myself to see if I had any progress since the last time. Surprisingly I am now able to do 15 straight skips, and I am less winded and able to re-start skipping almost as soon as I stop.

Filming myself skipping helps a lot because I get to see what is wrong with my form and what I should be doing to improve myself. It also helps a lot that there are a lot of references available on youtube on how to skip rope.

Even better, my ankles aren't hurting after my earlier work out. So I guess I'll go do another skip rope work out tomorrow, and hopefully I'll be able to keep this up daily.

Out.

Bonus: Here's my latest video of me skipping rope.

[800] Fourteen Years - Looking Back at this Blog

This blog will be turning 14 this coming March.

I've been skimming through old posts and checking them out. The only time I became very active with posts was when I tried to do the one photo a day challenge and blog about it. It was very, very useless since most of the posts were forced. Writing for the sake of making a blog, with no substance.

2009 was the year I had the fewest posts. This was the year I was getting ready to get married. It was also the year I went to Bangladesh (for work) for a few weeks and my folks and I went on a European vacation.

It's been a long time, and I'm glad I've been able to keep posting on this blog. Lately I guess my posts have been a lot more introspective. I guess that comes with age. I've also learned to censor myself a lot more since I started blogging. I've set up personal filters of what to post and what not to post. Maturity?

Anyway that's it. I'm posting too early about this blog turning fourteen, but in a way I'm excited I've been able to keep this up. The posts may not come as often, and I've become more private with my thoughts, but as long as I have something worth sharing to random strangers on the internet I will make a blog post.

Out.

[799] Skip Rope

I recently purchased a cheap skipping rope. I've not been in the mood to go walking lately because of all the road works going on inside our subdivision. My usual routes are blocked off and I really don't enjoy finding a new route. Like I said, I'm a creature of habit.

Anyway I got the skipping rope because I want to vary what little exercise I get here at home. I'm too lazy to use my kettlebells often so I thought trying skip rope will help.

I first started last Sunday and I can't skip more than eight or so times. I did keep trying though. The aftermath was expected. My calves were sore until yesterday, Wednesday. Sure I could walk but when I tried to skip rope last Tuesday it was too painful and I had no lift.

So I tried again earlier this morning. I decided to take a video of myself so I could see my form and to record any possible progress. Like I said in my youtube video, I think I still jump too high and of course I need to build my stamina up. Hopefully I can keep this up and improve my skip rope skills.

Out.

[798] 2019

2019 is here. It's only been six days in but a lot of things have happened already.

My wife went through major surgery three days ago. She is recovering well and we are moving forward with her overall recovery.

Today is our ninth wedding anniversary as well.

I have a feeling a lot of new changes are going to happen this year. I'm not banking on them being positive or negative, just changes.

As I said before, I'm not as excited or hopeful for this new year. It's just another day in the life.

Out.