An Eyebrow Epiphany

Let me talk about "vanity" and physical appearances a bit.

I have always been a low-maintenance kind of girl. I used to go out the house wearing nothing but loose powder on the face and maybe a touch of lip gloss. As in loose powder pa talaga, not even pressed powder. I did not notice anything bad during that time, but recently, just months ago, I realized I needed to "update" my look because I meet new people all the time. After all, first impressions matter!

The very thing that I changed was my eyebrows. I did not get them professionally done, though. My eyebrows are just DIY haha. But yes, I did realize that the face of a person dramatically changes when her brows are well-groomed and well filled-in. Before the realization, I used to look like this:

A photo posted by Marie Angeli Laxa (@maanlaxa) on Oct 6, 2014 at 7:44pm PDT

And this:

A photo posted by Marie Angeli Laxa (@maanlaxa) on Apr 19, 2014 at 7:28pm PDT

Don't ask me what those wriggly bushes are; those are actually my brows. And while I do not think I looked absolutely hideous, I knew they did nothing for my face and they actually look unruly, as if I don't know how to groom them. The first photo above is the last day my brows ever looked like that because on that day, I finally bought my now-favorite beauty tool: Etude House Draw my Brows.

I've only changed colors but have been loyal to that eyebrow pencil ever since. I really love how my eyebrows are done in 2 minutes tops. I've been wearing it every single day including short trips to the playground. I feel naked without it!

Of course, my eyebrows "grew" with me. First, I only plucked/shaved the "excess" hairs, then I gradually learned how to trim then, then I learned how to shape them so that they frame my face nicely. I'm still learning; I'm open to advice guys hihi.

And last Sunday, my epiphany happened. Yuri and I were in Etude House to buy another eyebrow pencil when the two ladies in front of us in the line were looking at my eyebrows. One of them is just beginning her "eyebrow journey" and the other lady actually pointed at me to show her my eyebrows. What. I was so embarrassed because I didn't even take time filling my brows that day (I was still tired from the village fiesta the previous day). They asked me what I do with it and what product I use.

Wala lang, I just realized that people do really look at eyebrows, whether consciously or unconsciously. I realized how truly important they are (am I sounding like a shallow, vain girl right now?), and how a single change in grooming or fixing them dramatically alters the entire face. I mean, I read about that all the time, but it was only last Sunday when it happened to me in real life.

What about you? What do you do with your brows?

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The Ultimate Summer Trip (Day 4): Vigan Museums

Read about the entire 6-day trip here.

During our fourth day of vacation, I was left in Vigan while all of the others (including Yuri) traveled upward to Ilocos Norte. At first, I moped around in the room because I was still in pain. Because I was not familiar with the place at all, I decided to just stay in and do some self-treatment inside of go to a hospital. (It's difficult to go to the emergency room alone in my experience.)

I think I slept until 10am, and I felt my stomach getting a little better. When I felt good enough to walk around, I went out of the hotel and bought food AKA energy drink and a bunch of bananas. This was my lunch (or brunch actually) for that day:

A photo posted by Marie Angeli Laxa (@maanlaxa) on Mar 23, 2015 at 9:34pm PDT

It was really fortunate that our hotel was located just in front of a grocery. It's not your usual city grocery, but it's good. There was actually a Puregold supermarket across, too, but I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to buy just one drink there. There were also several 7-11s, but I think they don't have bananas.

After eating my food, I just lounged around some more and watched Shake, Rattle, and Roll on TV (the one with the Ondoy feature). At 3pm, I decided to not waste my day in Vigan. Since we were not able to visit museums before - they close early - I decided to go museum-hopping. After all, I'm in one of the most historical places in the world!

So I took a bath, changed my clothes, went out of the hotel, and asked the first tricycle driver I saw to take me on a tour. That's the thing with Vigan: everyone can be a tour guide at the drop of a hat. I was blessed that I found a kind driver who took me to places safely and didn't ask for an exorbitant fee (I have a story about being charged exorbitantly in Vigan - I will tell you about it next time). He even took me to a place that makes fresh longanisa everyday, and the driver himself dropped off our orders of longanisa at our hotel later at 4 am. How kind!

Anyway, these are the places that I saw. Forgive me for the low-resolution photos; my camera was in Ilocos Norte. And keep in mind that I was still recovering from a sickness haha #excuses

Crisologo Museum

Floro S. Crisologo was the patriarch of the clan and a congressman known for being responsible for landmark legislations that not only benefited his constituents but the whole country as well. He authored the laws behind the creation of the North’s first state university, the University of Northern Philippines, and the establishment of the Social Security System, which serves the whole working populace to this day.

On a Sunday in October 1970, while he was inside the St. Paul’s Cathedral, Congressman Crisologo was shot in the head by a still unidentified gunman.

The mansion of the Crisologos is open for public viewing throughout the week. Visitors may find it in Vigan’s Liberation Boulevard. One may enter for free the museum and view the antiques, memorabilia and other prized possessions of the Crisologos steeped with history. (Vigan.ph)

Finance Friday: 7 Ideal Summer Businesses You Can Start Today

At long last, summer break is here! It’s indeed great to finally be able to relax and get a break from school. However, there’s that minor fact that you won’t be receiving any allowance from your parents for the time being. Don’t despair though, because there are plenty of ways to make some money at minimum or no capital at all! It’s not even about finding opportunities anymore. You can actually make your own opportunities to earn money. Here are some ways how:

1. Cellphone Loading

This is probably one of the cheapest and easiest to manage business ideas for the summer. If your summer plans so far consist of staying home, go to the nearest loading center instead. Avail of a cellphone loading kit and you’re ready to start earning. Who knows, your cute next-door neighbor might come knocking one day to buy prepaid credits.

2. Merienda Stand

Sell halo-halo, fish balls, kikiam, and cheese sticks to the kids in your neighborhood. The ingredients are not too expensive and preparation is very straightforward. This is a fun venture to start with friends or family members. Got a blender? Sell fruit shakes in the afternoon. All you need to set up is a table, chair, and a small space! You’d probably need a cooler, too.

3. Garage sale

Rummage around your closet or around the house for stuff that you don’t really use anymore but those other people might be interested in. Collect old clothing, shoes, furniture, books, appliances, and even toys, and hold a garage sale! Schedule your garage sale in advance and put posters all over the neighborhood. Be creative so you get people’s attention. Come opening day, your garage sale will be a hit!

4. Online selling

There are ways for you to earn profit from the time you spend online. You’ll find plenty of people selling everything from clothing and accessories to books and pastries through Facebook! If you don’t have the inclination to hold an actual garage sale, you can definitely try selling goods and services online. If you’re into arts and crafts and would like to sell your creations, try websites like Etsy.com.

5. Car washing

Offering services such as car washing requires only your labor as capital. Offer to wash cars of family members or your neighbors for a cheaper fee compared to car washing centers. Washing cars can actually be a lot of fun. It’s a good excuse to play with water (lots of it!) under the sun—and you get paid in the process. Just make sure to ask the car owners if they’d like their cars washed any special way and adhere to those requests.

6. Tutoring

Do a little good this summer by offering tutorial services to kids. You can advertise online or have family and friends help you tell people they know through word of mouth. Offer tutoring services for Math, English, or Science. Play any musical instrument? Teach others how!

Tutoring usually pays well and you can bill by the hour. The best thing is you only need knowledge, a few reference books, and in some cases, minimal transportation allowance.

If you’re exceptionally good in English, you can try to earn by teaching English online. Websites like RareJob.com connects you with people around the world who want to learn English. All you need is a stable Internet connection. Register with the website and pass screening tests to get started immediately.

7. Sports clinics

Summertime is when a lot of parents look for activities their children might join in. If you’re quite good at any sport, offer to teach or coach young kids (or even adults in your neighborhood) for a small fee. How to get started? Advertise a free session and invite everyone to go! It will help rouse people’s interests and let them get a preview of the sort of things they can learn from you.

Have a productive summer by using your time (this is your most valuable investment) to earn some money! Starting a small business or offering your services gives you invaluable experience. When the time comes that you go looking for a real job or ready to start a serious business, your stint as an online teacher or an online seller will get you farther than you think.

If professional employment is a long way off, at least you can get some extra pocket money to buy that gadget you’ve always wanted or grow your personal savings!

This post is brought to you by:

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The Ultimate Summer Trip (Day 3): Bantay and Vigan

Read about the entire 6-day trip here.

Early the following morning, at around 4:30 am, we checked out from the house and started gathering by our van. However, we weren't able to get out because our neighbor's car was blocking the driveway. We were finally able to start traveling to Ilocos at 5 am. We were so excited!

Call me naive, though, but I didn't expect Ilocos to be sooo far. I thought it would be, like, 3 hours away, but 3 hours passed and we were still in La Union! We slowly began removing our jackets and cardigans and realized we were not in Baguio anymore. Haha!

Tirik na ang araw when we finally arrived in Bantay, the town before Vigan. We got off our van for a photo op at Quirino Bridge.

Quirino Bridge

Then we headed to 

St. Augustine Parish

...this grotto of 

Our Lady of Charity

...and 

Bantay Bell Tower

We then proceeded to our hotel in Vigan, which is a budget hotel called Green-R (I'll write a separate post about our accommodations. Because everyone was so tired from the travel, we decided to rest first in our individual rooms but not before eating lunch at a nearby carinderia.

Why did we choose to eat in a carinderia? We wanted to experience genuine Ilocano dishes and foolishly thought we could eat genuine dishes there. But the dishes turned out to be average, and the owner charged us exorbitantly. Imagine, it was a really shabby place that lacked chairs, and for just our table alone, we were charged P500 for 4 viands - and the servings were really small! (Plus I still think I got stomach flu from the food there.) 

So much for that rant. At 3pm, we went out from the comfort of our rooms and toured Vigan.

Baluarte

Emergency Rooms, Preschools, My New Hair Color and Other Stories

Hi guys! It's 3:30 am here and I cannot sleep. It has been an hour since my mother and I came back from the hospital. Yes, I was in the hospital again! I feel exhausted, but I can't fall asleep so I decided to blog. After all, I have so much to tell you as I wasn't able to blog as often as I used to in the past months.

Emergency Rooms

Earlier, at 12 midnight, I woke up to very terrible stomach pains, diarrhea, and nausea. The works. It's also very similar to the symptoms I experienced during our vacation (which I have yet to write about).

A photo posted by Marie Angeli Laxa (@maanlaxa) on Mar 25, 2015 at 2:16am PDT

"My view earlier at 2 in the morning while lying down on a bed in a run-down hospital in Vigan."

I already learned my lesson (I delayed going to the hospital last time), so this time, after the first "bathroom session," we immediately headed off to the emergency room right away. I was prescribed medicines, but because I was not able to "go" inside the hospital, we decided to go through lab tests tomorrow, err, later today.

A photo posted by Marie Angeli Laxa (@maanlaxa) on Apr 12, 2015 at 11:50am PDT

For someone like me who rarely gets a fever, being in emergency rooms twice within the span of three weeks is an alien feeling. However, I've always had a weak stomach - when I was 10, pabalik-balik kami sa ospital for almost a month because of acute gastroenteritis. LBM is not a stranger to me so I've learned to self-medicate, but for this case tonight and the diarrhea-nausea that happened to me in Vigan three weeks ago, I was in a lot of pain - akin to labor pains actually! - thus the need to go to the emergency room. I'll be having lab tests later, and I hope it's nothing serious!

Preschools