Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting: October 2006

today during lunch i made trips to stores around the block in search for my FMIL's birthday gift.

i was very impressed with myself for the quick nonchalant response i gave when when the guy at Gucci quoted me a price of $730 for a small purse that i estimated would be $300, max. i didn't gasp, i didn't widen my eyes... i nodded naturally and put the bag down with a look that said i don't like the design. =)

at tiffanys, i came across the most beautiful necklace that the sales guy honestly admitted he wouldn't mind selling to me but probably isn't in my price range. when i gave him the "try me" look, he kindly told me it was in the thousands. i mean, it had a few specks of diamond, but thousands!!

so it took me awhile, but i finally found a gift that i'm really excited to give her. =)

i am officially sick of caramel macchiato. i thought this day would never come but then again, i thought the day that i hate panera bread would never come either. these are two things that i thought i could eat/drink every single day and be happy.

during last busy season, my team had panera bread every other day, and i've been drinking a grande skim caramel macchiato every day for the last week and a half (minus the weekend).

it's like my own curse. everything that i love, i eventually come to hate when i have as much as i wish.

it reminds me how animalistic and sinful we are.

it's kinda like james in A Million Little Pieces, which i started reading last night. in a way, i can relate with him.

i've been meaning to write an entry on what i've come to realize is my biggest fear in life. i think i've been struggling quite a bit with it, at times without even my knowing.

i am at work now and can't write more, but stay tuned. =)

i LOVE my phone. i went without it for a week and realized how much i took my 2-year-old beat up cell phone for granted. note to self: do not forget phone charger when packing to go out of town for a week. i missed it so much i almost bought another one (couldn't find a sprint store around though).

i worked in chevy chase this past week, and..... at times, it was confusing.. tiring... frustrating... torturous.... but then again, it was fun at times... even pampering. the torturous part was mainly because my client's office building was surrounded in all directions by stores like Cartier, Ralph Lauren, LV, Jimmy Choo, Saks Fifth, Banana Republic, Nieman Marcus, Lacoste, Jcrew, Ann Taylor, Gucci, and Blvgari. you'd think 13-hour work days would prevent me from shopping, but i surprised even myself. i took some of my lunch breaks to indulge in my femininity and did a bit of damage to my wallet. not a lot though, really.

frustruating was because i was supervising 3 new hires.... 2 guys straight out of college, mike and mike, and 1 31-year-old who has too many questions, alex. mike and mike kept a tally of alex's questions all week. i remember on wednesday at around 6pm, the tally was at 39 just from that day. guess who had to answer all those questions. lucky me! the guy just doesn't get the hint!

anyways, i better go for now. i hear the garage opening, which means my sister is here with my nephew, and i haven't seen him all week. can't wait to see how big he got.

i've finally learned to take take notes while i read. that way i don't have to read it again just to search for the quotes i thought were meaningful and worth remembering. (i thought ender's game was surprisingly philosophical and thought-provoking)

"The secret of life is to fall seven times and to get up eight times."

"Everyday was the same, and when each day is the same as the next, it's because people fail to recognize the good things that happen in their lives every day that the sun rises."

"We are afraid of losing what we have, whether it's our life or our possessions and property. But this fear evaporates when we understand that our life stories and the history of the world were written by the same hand."

"When people consult me, it's not that I'm reading the future; I am guessing at the future. The future belongs to God, and it is only he who reveals it, under extraordinary circumstances. How do I guess at the future? Based on the omens of the present. The secret is here in the present. If you pay attention to the present, you can improve upon it. And if you improve on the present, what comes later will also be better. Forget about the future, and live each day according to the teachings, confident that God loves his children. Each day, in itself, brings with it an eternity."

"The wise men understood that this natural world is only an image and a copy of paradise. The existence of this world is simply a guarantee that there exists a world that is perfect. God created the world so that, through its visible objects, men could understand his spiritual teachings and the marvels of his wisdom."

excerpts from The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

as i was cleaning my room today, my flowers seemed much prettier than usual for some reason, so i took some pictures. hopefully these pictures will last longer than the actual flowers, and that way i can forever cherish the special moment i received each. sentimental me, what can i say. =)

this is dick ireland. eric, after you mentioned it and finding it even more queer that he hasn't been on the air for a really really long time, i went onto wrbs website to find this:

http://www.wrbs.com/images/homextra/DickIreland_PR.pdf

i really enjoyed listening to him and mike alley bicker about the stupidest things. now it's just gonna be mike and his burps.

=(

deeply annoyed.

yesterday, i attended the villa julie accounting fair.

i've attended it ever since my junior year in college--twice as a student and three times as an employer. i remember it being a pretty nerve racking experience as a student, but now it's an annual event that i always look forward to.

for one, they have the best door prizes (which i have never won in the 5 times that i attended) and gifts for employers. second, i get to see my professors again. since vj is so small, the professors have a very close relationship with their students, and i always miss them a lot and can't wait to tell them what's new in my life. it's sort of like a reunion because almost every employer table has at least 1 alumnus, and we all went to school around the same time period... though i always notice how funny it is that competition still continues out of college.

there had always been a cut-throat side to accounting majors no matter how friendly they were to each other, and we were all overachievers. after a couple years out, we greet each other, hug, talk about recent events, work, family, etc. but still, behind our own table of brochures, pens, mugs, electronic fans, footballs, tote bags, professional boards, flash presentations, all to say "look our company is the best," we very much remain fierce rivals. it's quite comical.

deep inside, i know e&y beats them all. hehehee.

whenever i go back to my school, i tend to get sentimental. like really. last night, my feet were killing me after standing for a good 3 hours in my narrow shoes, but i still couldn't resist visiting the usual two spots: computer lab and library, where i spent the most time at school. i tried signing into one of the computers but they must've finally disconnected our alumni class.

everything looked and smelled the same. i felt such strong sentiments as i was driving out that i wondered if there's an innate longing in all of us for what is past, good or bad.

Picture_018.avi


this is little enoch making baby sounds. =)

i know you all must think my life consists of nothing but enoch, spending time with myself and wedding planning, but that's not so. there have been a lot more good/fun happenings in the last few weeks. small group finally started (yay!). i realized how much i miss them when i don't see them on a more frequent basis. chris and i had one of the most romantic nights out last weekend (we don't get too many opportunities for that anymore unfortunately). i got an e-mail from the board of public accountancy just today that i am now approved to take the cpa exam. no, i did not pass it. i just got approved to sit for it. it was an exhausting process of its own. please celebrate with me that i no longer have to take pointless classes. i can honestly say that almost $600 per credit of mba courses that i've taken so far have done practically nothing for me. i can see why they say an mba degree isn't as valuable as it used to be. but i suppose those 3 letters after your name could possibly mean something to snobbish corporations out there. maybe i'm just bitter i won't be finishing the program.

more pics:

trust me, i did not buy any of these myself. i do read every page carefully however.