Dumaguete Souvenirs - Mini Notebooks

My recent creations are these mini journals or notebooks. These are staple-bound and have blank white inner pages. The size is about a quarter or a letter-sized paper. This is the first batch of designs and I hope to be able to produce more and better designs in the future.

I am also thinking of doing other items that I can make by hand. But I would like them to be more of the useful stuff. If you have any in mind, suggestions are welcome!

I am just really disappointed that I cannot find any print shop in town that can do more flexible types of printing like with metallic ink or white ink on speckled cardboard.

I am a bit excited that these will now be officially sold locally at the beautiful shop of Rianna's, located at Cervantes St. in Dumaguete.

By the way, I have also added a few more items to my little online shop in Etsy. What I sell here are mostly handmade gift tags, journals and digital patterns for digital scrap-booking.

Thirty Candles

Well, it finally came. The big three-zero. I've rambled and whined a lot about it in my previous posts and right now, I feel obliged to write something today because I've never written about my previous birthdays.

Today, I'm just going to write about my thoughts on various aspects of my life currently.


On birthday greetings

To everyone who took a few seconds or a minute of their time to write "Happy birthday" on my Facebook timeline, all my thanks and appreciation. I didn't reply because I simply didn't want to sound like a broken and predictable record, but I did click "Like" on each one. Special thanks to those wrote a bit more than a greeting. I honestly am so happy that some thought of me as "creative", "artistic" and "gifted artist". I've always wanted to be a good creative person; to be someone who can do what most people cannot do. So my sincere thanks! You know who you are, if by chance you happen to read this.


On photography

It's been quite a journey from the day I started taking pictures seriously. I started December 2008 with a Canon point and shoot and had acquired a few better equipment since then. Travel was my inspiration and I must say it still is and even more until now. I've ventured into event and wedding photography. I'd say at some point, I did think I could do this for a living and probably go into being a full time event photographer. Unfortunately, such thought has slowly faded.

Don't get me wrong. I love and adore photography. It's one of the most beautiful field of art anyone can master. I would like to continue doing it and be so much better at it but not in the event or commercial field. I want to continue photography as something I use to express my vision and myself. Not gonna complain if anyone would like to express interest in releasing any of my work commercially. Wedding photography involves a lot of people skills and I really don't posses that. And most of the time, I don't feel excited anymore or happy or fulfilled despite the long tiring day, despite having photographed the whole day.

But it pays well, though. And I don't charge much. Maybe I could keep doing event photography as a milking cow, if I ever get nowhere in my plans in life.


On life

One thing I took special note today is a list of eight things the game Candy Crush teaches you about life (thanks to Rona).

1. Life is not always fair. Sometimes you get lucky with a good board, sometimes you don't. Deal with it.
2. Persistence is the key to success. If you persist long enough, one of these days you are bound to get it right somehow. Or get lucky. Or both.
3. Ask friends for help when you need it. You'll be surprised at how many are able and willing.
4. Help friends as much as you can. Life is all about give and take after all.
5. There will not always be friends who can help you out. It happens. Suck it up and wait.
6. You won't always understand what's going on. That's fine, you're not expected to.
7. Chocolate is evil. It will mess things up.
8. Life is equal parts fun and frustrating. It is full of challenges every step of the way, yet it can also be sweet and colorful!

Source

Right now I still have big dreams to pursue. If there's anything important I've learned in the past, there's always going to be obstacles along the way. Only few people get the best things in life without lifting a finger. But to most people, everything good or great equals enduring so many tough times and taking down all the obstacles. It's cliche, but there's a reason why it's been said so many times. Because that's just how it works.


On travel.

I want to see and experience every beautiful place on earth. Period.


On blessings

Even though I have so much to catch up on at this age, being thirty is a blessing. So many have gone ahead so early and no matter how unfulfilled I feel right now, I'm still thankful to God that I have lived a blessed life until this day. It may not be looking as intricate and exciting as I want it to be but still, it's a gift to be in this amazing and inspiring world.


On chasing dreams 

I would like to quote what blogger, Brian White said:

We have our whole lives to chase our dreams. Don’t let yours slip away.

And something he told his friend who was pretty much feeling down like me:

1. You’re not a failed anything till you’re dead.
2. Not even then.

I guess what's important to me is doing all the things I've wanted to do to make life colorful. One of my greatest fears would be to leave this world without having so much as a craziest birthday ever, or the funniest or craziest thing I did in public, or a best-Christmas-in-the-entire-world-ever or something like that.

If life is a blank canvas, I fear that mine will end up so plain and untouched, uninspiring and without color. As much as I am a fan of minimalist art in real life, I would like my life canvas to be the opposite. Maybe even if I never fulfill a dream or two, I would like to at least have so much adventure chasing it.

This world is just so beautiful and majestic that it would be such a loss never to experience and see it.

A friend of mine from high school referred to me today as someone with "a heart of an adventurer". I would like to live by that title and be that person inside out. Right now, it's only my heart and mind seeking the adventure.

Whew! This is becoming a lengthy read. Please excuse the pour of thoughts and emotions this time. I believe it's the perfect time to be reflective and do a rain check on what's been going on in my mind. There's always a time in one's life when he thinks about the big words: love, happiness, hope, regret, dreams, life. If you never have spared a minute of your life thinking about these, something maybe very wrong.

I never really got to blow thirty candles today. I don't have a cake even. But I got some vanilla ice cream, which I really love. The thirty candles are in my mind, I'm thinking now what they should represent. Thirty wishes? Thirty things to be thankful for? Thirty resolutions? Thirty things I've learned about life?

There will always be a fuss about turning thirty. There seems to be and unwritten rule or deadline that at this age, something must already have happened in your life (have a child, have a family, have a career, travel the world). I have not done any of these things so I kind of feel that way, but I promise myself I will change the way I think and that is to think positive and be motivated. I just hope this state of mind lasts because I don't want to be under a dark cloud again and feel bad about everything.

Thank you God for a happy and stress-free birthday. It may not be the best but sure am happy it's not bad at all.

It's all about the flowers

I'm so proud to share these pictures of my first ever "photographer-becomes-model" shoot. This is Joselle! I have mentioned her frequently in my previous blog posts. She's also my trusted second shooter when I cover some weddings that I can never do all by myself.

This photo session was actually her brilliant idea, not to mention the location which was quite a treasure to find. The idea was simply to take pictures of each other, especially of me because my birthday is coming and that it's one perfect way to end and start another year. We did this shoot because I think it's about time we do our own portrait session.

It's all about the flowers because as you will see in the later photos, the bougainvilleas are so perfect and lovely. Without them, I don't think this location would not be as photogenic.

Joselle also blogs actively and you can visit her blog at www.joselleamahit.net






 

Craft Love

Well, if there's one thing that keeps my mind off things, it's making paper arts like gift tags and journals. I actually plan on selling them on Etsy but I cannot find the time to create a listing yet.

I've created other mini journals in the past and have decided to go back to doing it so I could at least be productive.

I used to hand-stitch the journals I make but ever since I discovered the arm stapler (you know those really long office stapers), I think I'm going to be staple-binding my journals from now on. It's so much easier and cleaner to look at.

I'm also doing some experimenting on sewing pouches and zipped wallets. So far, they haven't been as perfect as I imagine them to look like but there's potential in perfecting them next time.

On Life and Turning Thirty

“And I learned what is obvious to a child. That life is simply a collection of little lives, each lived one day at a time. That each day should be spent finding beauty in flowers and poetry and talking to animals. That a day spent with dreaming and sunsets and refreshing breezes cannot be bettered. But most of all, I learned that life is about sitting on benches next to ancient creeks with my hand on her knee and sometimes, on good days, for falling in love.” — Nicholas Sparks

I've been seeing a lot of beautiful sunsets lately. Sunsets almost always bring me to a reflective mood, and whenever I see one, I pause and feel such awe and fascination how something so beautiful could be so different each day but always look so lovely.

What I have been thinking about recently, well actually not just recently but for quite some time already, is about turning thirty next week. I feel hesitant saying it here because I think most of the people I interact with online do not know how old I am. I actually wanted to keep it that way.

There's a common thought on being thirty especially to people who are younger than that. Thirty is old. And nobody wants to be associated with being "old". Well, I guess there's nothing wrong about being considered "old" as long as you've done everything you've ever wanted to do in your teens and twenties. I wonder so many times why I've allowed my life to be this uneventful and unsuccessful for so long.

One of the things I've always really wanted was to have a best friend. I have a couple of friends from work, I have hobby-friends, high school friends, but a best friend that I can always call and just spend time with for no reason at all on a daily or weekly basis, I have none. That's sad, I know. One reason that I have so little motivation is because I don't have that. I love my current friends and I treasure them and I would love for them all to be my best friends but I just feel they don't feel the same way. Like they already have their own best friends already, you know. You just really get the feeling. For my other friends, keeping in touch isn't easy because they work in other places. So I kind of gave up on having a best friend a long time ago. I just thought it would be nice to have someone just in case I don't end up having a family of my own.

I saw an episode of tv show Friends, the title was "The one where everybody turns thirty" and it was about Rachel (Jennifer Aniston) not liking the fact that she's turning thirty because unlike her friends, she has no child or a serious relationship with a guy at her age. At the end of the episode, they pointed out that being thirty is not so bad and that instead of being nervous or sad about what Rachel didn't have, she should be thankful for having everything she has and that includes all her five friends who care and love her.

That is true, I guess, but no matter how I make myself think positively, there's always this negative vibe trying to penetrate my head. I guess it is different for each person because we live different lives. I do have plans though on taking on pursuing my dream job and starting to live life how I want it but I can only do so much. Life is such a beautiful gift and I am afraid that I might not be able to live it the way I want.

Filipino celebrity Bianca Gonzales recently turned thirty and I feel so jealous that she feels so fulfilled at such age. She's mentioned things she's done, people she's met and I try to do the same, mostly about things I've done but I cannot name a lot. It only means I have a lot of catching up to do starting right now. I know it's not nice and healthy to compare our lives with others but with all this social media around me, I can't help but end up doing it! Often, I just wish I could to stop looking at Facebook. I'm not addicted to it or anything but ghad, when I open it, all these things are happening in other people's lives that just makes me rethink what I've been doing in mine.

I already know the answer to this dilemma but there's so much uncertainty. I'm not the spontaneous type of person and I like to think of backup plans just in case I get something unexpected.

But I know one thing I want to be no matter what happens and that is to be happy. Life is simply about working and living life to achieve happiness, big and small.

“When I was 5 years old, my mother always told me that happiness was the key to life. When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wrote down ‘happy’. They told me I didn’t understand the assignment, and I told them they didn’t understand life.” — John Lennon

Sibulan Flea Market

Every thirteenth day of the month, the municipality of Sibulan (15 minutes away from Dumaguete) holds a flea market in the park. The flea market is locally known as "ukayan" where people do "ukay-ukay" meaning to dig in piles and piles of second-hand clothing sold for low prices. But you don't just find clothes here. Vendors also sell used shoes, bags, blankets, etc.

I once visited Sibulan during the 13th a few months ago and found that it was quite nice to just go around and take pictures and look at people busy with thrift shopping, others just window thrift shopping. One thing I love reading are the signs the vendors put up. They're just so straight to the point and funny how they're written in the dialect! I love those kinds of signs actually, wherever they may be. They just have so much personality.

So after this little escapade, I took home a gray hoodie for Php 75.00. Not bad, but it would have been perfect if I got it at Php50.00 or below.

Pentax KX
Centuria 400

 

Dumaguete's Old Cafe Mamia

Today, Cafe Mamia is situated along corner Sta. Catalina St. and San Jose St, along the same street as Sans Rival Pastries in Dumaguete.

The old cafe was found along Rizal Boulevard just beside Mamia's Restaurant. It was really a nice cozy place to hang out. I was quite sad they had to move away from that location. But nonetheless, the new place is equally charming, the new interior being the renovated first floor of the Perdices house if I'm not mistaken.

I haven't photographed that place yet and had only been there once. But I leave you with some snaps from the last time I ate at the old Cafe Mamia, shot using a Pentax KX and a roll of Centuria 400.

Dumaguete's Some Kinda Wonderful

I always believe nature is never so difficult to photograph. It's all beauty in front of you waiting to be captured. Dumaguete has its share of amazing views of nature, the most popular one being the bay along Rizal Avenue. I would say this is one of the best things I like about living in Dumaguete. The Boulevard is what remains to be the most peaceful, laid back and charming place in town despite the hustle and bustle of people and vehicles along Perdices Street and Real Street.

When you decide to walk along it or just sit and watch the horizon in the distance, there's a peaceful feeling to it that you'd want to experience for a longer time.

One of the best times to hang out here would be during the late afternoon, when the sun is not hot but instead is warm and leaves a good feeling in your skin. And of course the early mornings when you can jog or walk along the long strip and witness some fantastic sunrise.

On one side where you can see the popular landmark of Silliman University, the Silliman Hall is where you'll see a line of tempura vendors that each provide a small area for you to sit, eat, listen to music, enjoy the view and breathe in some fresh air. I've heard people call this area recently as "Tempura Al Fresco" which has quite nice to hear in my opinion.