more peeks at settling in

I have fully moved in with my parents and only visit the old place to transport things. I do the transporting by stages in order to manage the cleaning and fixing and arranging, especially of the tons of books that have to be re-organized into various shelves.

I gave priority to fixing my workspace/writing nook because a project is due to begin by end of next week and I really want to get seriously started on the research work for this year's NaNoWriMo. I have also decided to make my workspace more of a writing nook than a day-job workspace. Hence my "work" shelf actually has more of the happy stuff (my library of journals, writing books, notebooks) than the day-job stuff.

I also discovered that having no windows (my corner is literally a corner and under the stairs and walled in by a shelf) somehow helped me work better because I am less sensitive to the passing of the day and thus feel less resentful of feeling that I spent most hours just working on the day-job. The light is constant as if it is always early evening and I often pretend I am a hardworking detective on a mystery crime case working overtime (yes, it has a bit of that feel). Much better than enduring the daylight change from morning to late afternoon and realizing that I have been in the same spot doing the same thing.

A whole new theme and flavor for my writing nook/ work space.

in progress

a very rare selfie, and only because I want to show off the owl print that is now in my writing nook

Today's focus will be the bedroom. I hope to make progress in it well enough to be able to show nice photos. Then next on the list is the bathroom which is now much bigger and also shared with my sister. There is an unbelievable amount of possessions to sort through, combine, de-clutter.

Finding the right balance of co-existence in shared spaces is a very big deal and in that matter I count myself pretty lucky that I get along with my sister. She lives on rigid, almost obsessive but enviable well-orchestrated schedules while I fare better with a flexible day that leaves much space for maneuvering and flowing in any direction. I am more impulsive and indulgent. I am also worse at getting lists ticked off.

my odd sister. queen of calendars, schedule master.

thoughts after the first shop day

Yesterday was the first bazaar day which we held in our parents' garage. I had my own reservations and doubts as to the level of success we could achieve that day but I was pretty sure about what we wanted to accomplish. We wanted to see if we have something to work on in terms of a theme and an idea, and if the customers (the ones we hoped to attract) will pick up on it, and we also wanted to learn how else we can fine-tune everything. While we didn't make much in terms of actual sales, our first day taught us tons of good lessons (as well as confirmed or resolved some thoughts we were not sure about) and we were actually pleased and happy as we closed shop by the end of the day.

Tending shop is hard work - occasional refreshments are needed.

My family has been doing regular garage sales since I left my job more than a year ago to help augment the monthly income. Those garage sales were rough, functional, turn-things-into-cash kind of setups. It attracted its own kind of customers. We knew that the same customers will be the first to take a peek at the bazaar and we still had some items for them but we knew that generally they would most likely be disappointed. But we wanted to evolve beyond just a garage sale. We want a theme. We want creativity. We want to be more than just an occasional seller of cheap used goods. We want to bring life into what used to be a purely functional activity. We want a story. When that story is complete I will write about it in better detail but for now we are basically testing the waters.

Interestingly, even with the bright low prices, the garage sale customers (mostly female) were hesitant to explore. Even more interesting, we had more male customers drawn in compared to previous garage sales.

After the initial volume of garage sale customers (who mostly didn't buy anything and judged the whole bazaar with a few sweeping scans from the gate), everything slowed down to a trickle. However there were two or three customers closer to the type we wanted to attract. One bought lots of dresses without fussing and haggling. The other two browsed all the interesting items and conversed and openly admired the redesigned bags (finally someone noticed!). These two expressed intentions of dropping by again on Sunday.

Then it rained during lunch break just as we were hoping for the employees in the surrounding streets to drop by after their lunch. The rain didn't let up until 2PM. A lot of people passed by but they were huddled inside their umbrellas and walking too fast and not even looking anywhere else but ahead.

We had to move some items  out of the rain which messed up our display arrangements a bit. But people were not really looking so I guess it didn't really matter.

After raining for the whole of the lunch break period, the sun came out. The street was empty and quiet, as empty and quiet as our bazaar, which actually made us want to take a nap and eat merienda.

Rice cakes for merienda. Delicious and filling at only Php5 per piece.

And this is how I passed the time especially since we had a lot of it in our hands. The last time I did crochet was in high school. Was happy to find out it's like riding a bike, you never forget (although I have never actually ridden a bike).

My sister passed the time by sewing pretty things on my plain brown shoes. Customers who dropped in asked about the shoes if they were for sale. Even the males!

We closed shop at 6PM with barely enough to cover the transportation expenses we spent the past couple of weeks just putting the whole thing together.

Normally I would be saddened and discouraged by a day like this. but for some reason I remained optimistic and even excited by all the things that I learned and realized as I observed the customers and the shop dynamics. I scribbled ideas in a notepad, things to consider for the other days of the bazaar (December 4, 16 and 19).

I am also still inspired by the original idea from which this whole bazaar thing sprung from (something I will write about more when it is more a reality than just an idea). As thoughts popped in my head as I made my observations, it also became clearer to me what matters and what is really important. All those years of brand work and strategic sessions and consumer insight projects are probably finally becoming even more real to me. Not only that, I am also discovering interesting new twists and perspective in the usual marketing mix.

Today I am recovering from the exhaustion of the past week and recharging myself for another shop day on Sunday. I am eager to try out a few new things.

One last thing before I sign off on this post: the last couple of weeks of work I did preparing, creating, problem-solving, doing lots of legwork, physical setting up, designing, learning, and everything else has been comparable to a nationwide in-depth consumer research project topped off with a few more layers of midnight work marathons. But I felt infinitely happier and more satisfied at the end of each day, especially as my hands touch each hand-sewn flower or lace trimming, or as I wash my hands gray from sifting through thrift items. My hands, bone-tired and crusty with glue or cramped from so much writing or criss-crossed with thread cuts or mapped with needle punctures. Everything feels real. Yet everything also feels rooted in that realm of soul where I could not enter before. This is no longer just about mental prowess or intelligence or those stuff that fill up an annual evaluation form. This is about heart. This is about spirit. I will be dramatic and say I believe my life's purpose is peeking around the next corner. I hope and pray that I am able to stay on this path even as I have to fulfill financial responsibilities and obligations. Dear Universe, I request for aid and thank you for everything.

a day in hipstamatic

Wednesday, 9th of November

Weather forecast says there's going to be rain for the next few days.

My mom came to visit and brought me home-cooked lunch. Thanks Mom!

Been working all day on a project due on Friday. Will most likely stay up all night.

Went for a swim in the late afternoon to refresh my brain. There are christmas flowers already!

My sis and myself after swimming

Post-swim snack : spanish bread, egg pie, and coffee
(Then it was back to more work)

Another break : reviewed some old journals for the new journal inspiration.

My sis playing with Mogget

Mogget the monorail cat, right on top of my flat TV

Cups of coffee sustain me through the long work day (and night)

off the routines

I haven't been feeling too well the past few days. I could use a few more hours of sleep, a lot more exercise and a lot less of stress.

I didn't practice kendo today because I just felt too blah and out of it that if I had practiced I would have cried at the slightest provocation.

Instead I read and studied and made notes and lists. I did some chores. I checked some recipes. I started cleaning and clearing my computer files. Then I stepped out to the mall to pay some bills in the payment center and to pick up a few items from the supermarket. I also went to the bookstore to get M. Scott Peck's The Road Less Traveled -- a book highly recommended by my best friend when we chatted online recently and I was seeking her advice on something important. My mom went with me and we had some quiet time together.

When I got back home I started to prepare dinner -- pork marinated in lemon, pepper and soy sauce. Then fried with onions and sauced with more soy sauce. I matched it with potato-carrot salad.

My sister arrived from kendo practice at almost 8pm. Our friends Peter Paul and Dave showed up at almost 10pm bearing cupcakes and cinnamon rolls and immediately asking how I was feeling.

I certainly felt much better by the time everyone left at around 11pm. I was cheered up and I felt taken care of and I felt calmed all at the same time.

I will sleep now. It's really late. Will see you again tomorrow.

last-minute magic

I was bracing myself for not going. There was no way I can swing it.

As I cleaned and cleared my closet and dusted off my travel bag, a memory surfaced. There is this one project that I have shelved in my head but which still owes me a decent amount of money. I could get paid for it within November if I push hard enough for the project implementation (I have not pushed hard enough because I never liked pushing anyone into anything except maybe pushing myself). On the other hand, I realized that if I am going to be serious about making proper money from this business I should level up my aggressiveness a few notches.

So I remembered that project. And if I just do a couple of days' intense revisions to the materials I could push for a project implementation closer to my terms but which will benefit both parties. Hence it will not be too much of a stressful thing.

And if I am able to push for that project I can get paid. Then that gap in my budget which prevents me from crossing over to helping the trip happen can be filled enough to make me manage.

I did not practice kendo to reserve my energies for work and preparations. I scoured the Internet for hotels and I found a good promo deal from a 4-star hotel right along Nathan Road and right within the area of one of the walking tours that my sister and I want to do. We filled up the forms, reviewed options, changed our minds, searched, repeated the process, repeated it again, and lingered over the "confirm" button until we decided to press it together by 8:30 in the evening.

Then it was just the spending money, of which we need just a little because we were willing to survive on 7-eleven meals.

Our dear, dear friend Peter Paul got wind of our plans and casually mentioned he had some Hong Kong dollars stowed away. He offered to lend it to us, let us use it, and have us pay only for the exact amount we actually consume so we don't have to spend any extra for foreign exchange (of course we return all the extra dollars to him).

And that solves our daily cash dilemma. We have more than enough for meals, getting around and a few cups of good tea or coffee. Most of the time we intend to do walking tours, read in the parks, maybe visit a museum, take lots of photographs, write in our journals, and simply savor the deliciousness of being someplace else. This will be a strictly super-budget trip and I would like to see how savvy we can be on the thinnest of shoestrings. Maybe you can pick up a trick or two later on.

With everything being last-minute, I am now on a deadline to get packed and fully prepared, plus take care of some work details like emails to clients to remind them that I will be out for the week. Flight is at 5:40AM tomorrow.

I'm still not absorbing the fact yet 100%. But I will be going to Hong Kong tomorrow with my sister. Yaaaay!!!

braving the malls on a sunday sale

I picked up my sister at 9:45am. The mall opens at 10am. I decided to take the chance of bringing my car and finding parking. We were lucky. We found a pretty good parking spot.

Very cheap breakfast of multi grain bagels from a French bakeshop, at a buy-one-take-one deal for only Php48. My sister had coffee (with a free brownie) for only Php30 and I had a bottle of water for Php20.

Found the books I wanted in the bookstore and checked the prices. It would be much cheaper to get them via Kindle. Went to another bookstore that sold second hand books and I could not resist a book on sewing projects for only Php145. (I also decided I want to include selected vintage books in my vintage store.)

Found a potential replacement for the super-dilapidated kitchen shelf in my parents' house. Will see how I can fit it into the budget.

Found the camera I want at a discounted price with a special 0% interest for a 12-month installment. 3-year-warranty. I am seriously considering it.

I need to make more money.

crafty day thursday, part 1

According to plan, I went to the dentist. The Happy Peach, my sister, decided to tag along and see what the rest of the day will surprise her with. After the dentist, we went to our Gramma's house who was very delighted to be visited by her grandchildren. We brought banana-qs for snack (deep-fried sugar-coated bananas on sticks) and Gramma served us coffee.

Gramma & The Happy Peach

Gramma was extra delighted when my sister and I expressed our desire to learn everything we could from her about her handmade crafts and sewing. She said she thought no one would really carry on the art and the skills anymore. She got excited at the prospect of bequeathing her (truly vintage) materials including her collection of buttons, sewing patterns, cloths and everything else she used for her crafts.

Right now she is busy making decorated native fans for Christmas gifting and for selling.

She says she cannot sew as much as she used to because her hands have become too arthritic. So she controls herself by only sewing one thing a day -- because she loves crafting so much that she could easily lose track of time and only realize it when she starts aching.

Next: Gramma's hand-sewn bags and pouches

another bookmark

Here's another bookmark made by my sister which I'm using while reading Savvy Chic.

free bookmark!

The nice thing about a crafty sister is I get a lot of free goodies. Especially bookmarks - which I get to use a lot because I read multiple books at a time and I like marking favorite pages and passages.

The latest I got is this one:

surprise pie

It's my sister's birthday today. So to give her a little surprise treat I baked her a berry pie - strawberry and blueberry. But I couldn't find the Betty Crocker Pie Crust mix in the supermarket so I made from scratch - and luckily it turned out alright, despite a rather crunchy edge (which my sister actually liked as they softened in the cream and filling).