Monday, July 04, 2011
Sunday, July 03, 2011
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Saturday, June 25, 2011
KC from Paris to Pinas
incomplete
by audiovideomagix in youtube
http://www.veoh.com/watch/v1524253C72Y2grQ
http://www.veoh.com/watch/v1539580Y665xA3j
Thursday, June 23, 2011
KC Reads: Haruki Murakami
Book ListNorwegian Wood
South of the Border, West of the Sun
Sputnik Sweetheart
source: http://services.inquirer.net/print/print.php?article_id=20110106-312911
Viena: I like this quotation from Sputnik Sweetheart, misquoted here in Nearly Famous relate dto the tragic story of Rose and 10 in Doctor Who.
"And it came to me then. That we were wonderful traveling companions but in the end no more than lonely lumps of metal in their own separate orbits. From far off they look like beautiful shooting stars, but in reality they're nothing more than prisons, where each of us is locked up alone, going nowhere. When the orbits of these two satellites of ours happened to cross paths, we could be together. Maybe even open our hearts to each other. But that was only for the briefest moment. In the next instant we'd be in absolute solitude. Until we burned up and became nothing."
— Haruki Murakami (Sputnik Sweetheart)
KC's Bag: Chanel Flap 2.55 Reissue in Purple
from http://www.cosmo.ph/style-beauty/whats-in-my-bag/kc-concepcion-is-pretty-in-purple-with-her-chanel-purse/
Click the link to see what's in her bag:
iPhone
Christian Dior sunglasses
Goyard wallet
Gilchrist & Soames Lip Balm
Keys
Lavender Oil
Stud earrings
Click the link to see what's in her bag:
iPhone
Christian Dior sunglasses
Goyard wallet
Gilchrist & Soames Lip Balm
Keys
Lavender Oil
Stud earrings
The purse costs: $1,995.
Other celebrities who have this bag:
Blake Lively
Kirsten Dunst
from celebrityarmcandy.com Mischa Barton
from ibuybag.com
Wednesday, March 02, 2011
Kace's Carousel Milenyo, Marilyn, Joe Malone and the moral of this story
By KC Concepcion
Inquirer
Posted date: October 06, 2006
"NO damage, really. Just wet," my Tita says about her open-spaced nest in lovely Laguna. Little did I know I was missing what is said to be the biggest typhoon to hit Manila in over a decade.
Uprooted trees
We Filipinos living abroad surely heard about the thousands of trees uprooted all over. How sad to see hundreds of trees with their roots up in the air--even in seemingly sublime places like Legazpi Village, Salcedo Village, Forbes, Alabang. Westgrove Heights lost 500 trees! So somber and disenchanting somehow.
And though some people were lucky to have untouched homes, a five-day power outage, cellsites down by storm, flying fastfood signs damaging parked cars, missing rooftops and ruined heartbeats tell us a tale of Nature being so violent. And three hours before the storm, who would have known?
After three and a half years of living away, yesterday was the first time my family and I reattended church. We spent much of our week praying for electricity, water systems, hearts, minds, families, lives and Metro Manila to be restored. I have to admit, though, that I was in the process of texting friends in Manila a few days before, sharing my escape in photography exhibits and guiltless imagination. To feel better about such indulgences, I convinced myself that I could just hear my aunt saying to me now, "Thank you so much for a spot of Paris and beauty and art. Haven’t had power for four nights now and although moonlight bathes my nest, I see stars when I take cold heater-less showers." Heater-less showers. Heartless storms.
All of us have high points and low points in our lives and who is going through better or worse is not really the point. For all of us, there are things we really need to sort out, our brain needs to absorb what happened, our soul needs to eat it up. This is when you know that in the end you will have to help yourself make a choice, and to choose a direction. Are you going to continue with your frustrations? Are you going to be happy? Are you going to pacify yourself by helping somebody else sleep better today?
Marilyn
Just as nature could be so unexpectedly intrusive and violent, so could other things. In a photo exhibit at the Musée Maillol, were the last shots ever taken of Marilyn Monroe before her death in 1962. Wrapped in images of her, I realized you can never really figure out how the mind of a larger-than-life movie star works (or anyone else’s for that matter). Her photos were ethereal, with her blond hair and light skin twisted between crisp and white linen against a blank backdrop bathed in natural light. The whole look was white on white on white. Showcased, as well, were photographs in a ’60s coral-orange tint that might be difficult to replicate today. However, what was more interesting about the Monroe exhibit was seeing Marilyn exist in so many different states of mind. On one wall, her photos made her look nonchalantly ready to crash into bed, solemn and drunk as a daisy. On another wall, she was stunning, a sweetheart, happy and high. One would also describe her with the words simple, subtle, and utterly smashed, as, at times, it seemed she was either one or the other. But then I would glance to my left, and on another wall were images of the icon, many different Marilyns, all scrambled together.
Doing that photo shoot could have taken her anywhere between two hours to a whole day, but one thing is for sure: there was something going on in her life at that point in time that led to her death less than a week later. Not knowing her story, sometimes all we can do is guess what is going on in another person’s life. The only way is to read between the lines, to understand things from both sides: false lashes fluttering over sad eyes, pearls and diamonds draping over a hungry body, fabulous white heels sinfully stained with drops of red wine. All these could have been clear signs that a suicide would happen a week later. But, maybe, nobody bothered to look hard enough. Maybe we don’t listen enough, or empathize enough. While some may do some acting and concealing ever so well, others might not be acting on things they should be doing, quick enough, or hard enough. We all need to learn when to keep things private, and when to share with the world, when to keep an eye out and when not to meddle. Some things are better left unsaid, other things deserve to be immortalized--in photos, in scripts, in spirit--neverendingly beautiful and alive. Marilyn will forever remain the latter.
Joe Malone
On a "lighter note" it is much too important to take things in with some humor and a grain of (perfumed) salt. Some may say I am a late bloomer when it comes to discovering British perfume brand Joe Malone, but prancing through the perfume boutique I also had the pleasure of discovering that, which others may not be entirely aware of. To all fashionistas, lo and behold, this perfume is actually less expensive here in Paris than in the UK from where the brand and product originate: a bottle may be worth 80 euros in Paris and 100 pounds up in London! The concept of it is that customers are provided the opportunity to concoct their own personal fragrance. The boutique then becomes a mini venue where the mixing and matching of various fragrances becomes possible with the end goal of being able to stand out in the crowd, quite possibly with your nose raised up high. Skimming through Grapefuit Lime and French Vanilla, Fig and French Lavender, I noticed that any scent that had the word "French" in it turned out to have a petite touch of baby powder. I then concocted a floral French Lime flavor to suit my young girl-regression needs, spritzed the oils on my pulse spots (as is common yet an obligatory demonstration is often required) and continued to what would be the yummy highlight of the evening.
Victoire de Castellane
Another important fact to know is that Victoire de Castellane, designer of Dior’s jewelry line, LOVES DESSERT. Coming to her jewelry exhibit while still at France’s first department store, Le Bon Marché, I doubted she ever got stressed with work with all that sugar and the means to afford Parisian pastries. On a screen via a video projector, there she was with her baby bangs and quirky clothing, pointing to four cakes and other desserts saying, "Ca, et ca, et ca, et ca. Merci!"
I sat down on one of her custom-made French chairs (with white fabric seasoned with colorful images of fancy rings, candy wrappers, and semi-precious stones) bewildered and thinking to myself: When you find yourself wanting this, that, and oh, that other thing, this is when you know you are going completely crazy. Not that crazy is necessarily a bad thing, but we all have to admit that we can hardly ever be all things for all people. After having a taste of the many sides of work, love, life, there will come a point sometime where you will have to make a choice: which dessert best suits my taste, which path is more valuable for me to follow? From where you are, you just have to stop and think, am I going to stay, or am I going to go? Once you decide, you then have to think of how to wait or how to leave. Someday there will be a tipping point waiting to be reached, and once you reach it, it’s up to you to decide whether or not to look back. And when you’re tired of thinking at all, then you just go where the river takes you, let some things go, and allow them to flow to where they will. Get hurt, enter the chaos, and through it all try to keep still. "Sounds yum," Victoire might say. Well, life with all its sugar and spice sounds yum to me.
So the moral of the story is this: when you can’t take the stress, instead of resorting to some silent way of exiting the universe, just run out in the streets and wake the neighbors up. Or you can just calm down, deal with your situation, pacify yourself and zen out. You have to make a choice, after all, and at the end of the day, it’s got to be yours. And time will really help you sort it through, which is something you’ve just got to force yourself to do.
I was about to sleep when I still smelled roses on my wrist and the faint hint of French Lime. And with just one whiff, for whatever it was worth, the world stood still while I thanked God for one calm evening, and one good afternoon.
Inquirer
Posted date: October 06, 2006
"NO damage, really. Just wet," my Tita says about her open-spaced nest in lovely Laguna. Little did I know I was missing what is said to be the biggest typhoon to hit Manila in over a decade.
Uprooted trees
We Filipinos living abroad surely heard about the thousands of trees uprooted all over. How sad to see hundreds of trees with their roots up in the air--even in seemingly sublime places like Legazpi Village, Salcedo Village, Forbes, Alabang. Westgrove Heights lost 500 trees! So somber and disenchanting somehow.
And though some people were lucky to have untouched homes, a five-day power outage, cellsites down by storm, flying fastfood signs damaging parked cars, missing rooftops and ruined heartbeats tell us a tale of Nature being so violent. And three hours before the storm, who would have known?
After three and a half years of living away, yesterday was the first time my family and I reattended church. We spent much of our week praying for electricity, water systems, hearts, minds, families, lives and Metro Manila to be restored. I have to admit, though, that I was in the process of texting friends in Manila a few days before, sharing my escape in photography exhibits and guiltless imagination. To feel better about such indulgences, I convinced myself that I could just hear my aunt saying to me now, "Thank you so much for a spot of Paris and beauty and art. Haven’t had power for four nights now and although moonlight bathes my nest, I see stars when I take cold heater-less showers." Heater-less showers. Heartless storms.
All of us have high points and low points in our lives and who is going through better or worse is not really the point. For all of us, there are things we really need to sort out, our brain needs to absorb what happened, our soul needs to eat it up. This is when you know that in the end you will have to help yourself make a choice, and to choose a direction. Are you going to continue with your frustrations? Are you going to be happy? Are you going to pacify yourself by helping somebody else sleep better today?
Marilyn
Just as nature could be so unexpectedly intrusive and violent, so could other things. In a photo exhibit at the Musée Maillol, were the last shots ever taken of Marilyn Monroe before her death in 1962. Wrapped in images of her, I realized you can never really figure out how the mind of a larger-than-life movie star works (or anyone else’s for that matter). Her photos were ethereal, with her blond hair and light skin twisted between crisp and white linen against a blank backdrop bathed in natural light. The whole look was white on white on white. Showcased, as well, were photographs in a ’60s coral-orange tint that might be difficult to replicate today. However, what was more interesting about the Monroe exhibit was seeing Marilyn exist in so many different states of mind. On one wall, her photos made her look nonchalantly ready to crash into bed, solemn and drunk as a daisy. On another wall, she was stunning, a sweetheart, happy and high. One would also describe her with the words simple, subtle, and utterly smashed, as, at times, it seemed she was either one or the other. But then I would glance to my left, and on another wall were images of the icon, many different Marilyns, all scrambled together.
Doing that photo shoot could have taken her anywhere between two hours to a whole day, but one thing is for sure: there was something going on in her life at that point in time that led to her death less than a week later. Not knowing her story, sometimes all we can do is guess what is going on in another person’s life. The only way is to read between the lines, to understand things from both sides: false lashes fluttering over sad eyes, pearls and diamonds draping over a hungry body, fabulous white heels sinfully stained with drops of red wine. All these could have been clear signs that a suicide would happen a week later. But, maybe, nobody bothered to look hard enough. Maybe we don’t listen enough, or empathize enough. While some may do some acting and concealing ever so well, others might not be acting on things they should be doing, quick enough, or hard enough. We all need to learn when to keep things private, and when to share with the world, when to keep an eye out and when not to meddle. Some things are better left unsaid, other things deserve to be immortalized--in photos, in scripts, in spirit--neverendingly beautiful and alive. Marilyn will forever remain the latter.
Joe Malone
On a "lighter note" it is much too important to take things in with some humor and a grain of (perfumed) salt. Some may say I am a late bloomer when it comes to discovering British perfume brand Joe Malone, but prancing through the perfume boutique I also had the pleasure of discovering that, which others may not be entirely aware of. To all fashionistas, lo and behold, this perfume is actually less expensive here in Paris than in the UK from where the brand and product originate: a bottle may be worth 80 euros in Paris and 100 pounds up in London! The concept of it is that customers are provided the opportunity to concoct their own personal fragrance. The boutique then becomes a mini venue where the mixing and matching of various fragrances becomes possible with the end goal of being able to stand out in the crowd, quite possibly with your nose raised up high. Skimming through Grapefuit Lime and French Vanilla, Fig and French Lavender, I noticed that any scent that had the word "French" in it turned out to have a petite touch of baby powder. I then concocted a floral French Lime flavor to suit my young girl-regression needs, spritzed the oils on my pulse spots (as is common yet an obligatory demonstration is often required) and continued to what would be the yummy highlight of the evening.
Victoire de Castellane
Another important fact to know is that Victoire de Castellane, designer of Dior’s jewelry line, LOVES DESSERT. Coming to her jewelry exhibit while still at France’s first department store, Le Bon Marché, I doubted she ever got stressed with work with all that sugar and the means to afford Parisian pastries. On a screen via a video projector, there she was with her baby bangs and quirky clothing, pointing to four cakes and other desserts saying, "Ca, et ca, et ca, et ca. Merci!"
I sat down on one of her custom-made French chairs (with white fabric seasoned with colorful images of fancy rings, candy wrappers, and semi-precious stones) bewildered and thinking to myself: When you find yourself wanting this, that, and oh, that other thing, this is when you know you are going completely crazy. Not that crazy is necessarily a bad thing, but we all have to admit that we can hardly ever be all things for all people. After having a taste of the many sides of work, love, life, there will come a point sometime where you will have to make a choice: which dessert best suits my taste, which path is more valuable for me to follow? From where you are, you just have to stop and think, am I going to stay, or am I going to go? Once you decide, you then have to think of how to wait or how to leave. Someday there will be a tipping point waiting to be reached, and once you reach it, it’s up to you to decide whether or not to look back. And when you’re tired of thinking at all, then you just go where the river takes you, let some things go, and allow them to flow to where they will. Get hurt, enter the chaos, and through it all try to keep still. "Sounds yum," Victoire might say. Well, life with all its sugar and spice sounds yum to me.
So the moral of the story is this: when you can’t take the stress, instead of resorting to some silent way of exiting the universe, just run out in the streets and wake the neighbors up. Or you can just calm down, deal with your situation, pacify yourself and zen out. You have to make a choice, after all, and at the end of the day, it’s got to be yours. And time will really help you sort it through, which is something you’ve just got to force yourself to do.
I was about to sleep when I still smelled roses on my wrist and the faint hint of French Lime. And with just one whiff, for whatever it was worth, the world stood still while I thanked God for one calm evening, and one good afternoon.
http://services.inquirer.net/print/print.php?article_id=20061006-25201
Kace's Carousel Ain't over 'til it's over!
First posted 00:43am (Mla time) Mar 11, 2006
By KC Concepcion
Inquirer
Editor's Note: Published on page C2 of the March 11, 2006 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer
SOMEONE always used to remind me that you have to do what you can, with what you have, where you are. Filipinos out here are extremely good at doing this, all the while keeping their dignity despite hardships in their lives while in a foreign land. Of course most OFWs are concerned with more serious issues that have little to do with figuring out how to recreate home stuff through the arts and crafts, but, we might learn a little something from their resourcefulness and abilidad!
To think we’re from a place where if you can afford something basic like eat 3 full meals a day, then you are already considered lucky, sometimes we just need to calm down on the wanting and the buying, and feeling guilty for not having the latest version of something. Yes I’m quite aware that this is coming from a product endorser, but, in the end, we just really do not have to have it all! Okay, for some I should at least say … we don’t need to have it all, ALL the time! Tsk tsk! Make use of what you already have, reinvent it, and feel good about it! Here are 10 happy ways to reuse things around the house ’cos the second time can surely be sweeter! Have fun!
Eyeglass frames
If you have kid sisters or brothers who have outgrown old but super fun children’s sunglasses, you don’t need to throw them out or give them away just yet. If they’ve lost the glass lenses, then even better, because you can use the lens parts of the eye glass frame as picture frames for close up shots or wideshots of nice views from places you’ve been to. Colors like hot pink or red, for example, work well with glossy black and white photos.
CDs
Scrap CDs can be strung together with nylon strings and hung up as retro curtains. Others use beads, while others use old CDs -- mostly CDs that contained documents and word files instead of something sacred like music. You can ask your colleagues or someone who works in an office to compile old CD-ROMs for you. The most interesting part is when the sun reflects on the discs and bounces onto your walls like bubbles. The first time I saw the effect it reminded me of how I would play with the “dancing bubbles” reflecting on airplane seats while light from the windows bounced off my lolo’s watch. Kids could have fun with this!
Earrings
When funky earrings go out of style and you would hate to throw them away, you can turn them into table napkin rings! Just remove the backs with pliers, hot-glue them onto a cord and tie them into a circle to form the rings. They will make table settings look special even when using cheap paper napkins.
‘Bayongs’ and baskets
Medium-sized fruit baskets or little bayongs mounted on the wall or resting on a desk can make for a cute, functional, contained spot for invitations, notes, pictures, bills, incoming and outgoing letters, catalogues, or magazines. You can mount the baskets up on the wall, one on top of the other or in a row, about four inches apart, using nails and screws. You can sew things into them for a subtle personal touch, too. Just make hand-written or computerized labels that you can attach to the baskets with masking tapes (“Bills,” “Mail,” “Sketch Designs,” “Ideas,” “Don’t Forget,” etc.). For younger sisters and brothers, you can hit two birds with one stone: Have bonding time fun and motivate them to do homework, too. Ask them to help you paint the baskets, or color the labels for them, then show them their new homework in-box! I’m sure my sister would enjoy doing her super cool preschool homework if she sees it popping out of a big, red, ladybug!
Magazines
Speaking of magazines, my mother and I can (ridiculously) fill up a whole attic with just old beauty and teen magazines alone. If you are like us, then it might be a good idea to spend one whole day sorting out the articles you still find useful, putting them into clear folders or plastic portfolios, and then separating the parts of the magazines you won’t read anymore. Once you’ve done that, you can send them to Samahan ng Muling Pagkabuhay Multipurpose Cooperative (727-0681) to make woven paper boxes and creations that you can use for gifts, gatherings, or give-aways for events. Three years ago, for my debut giveaways, we sent them the stacks of old magazines that ranged from the 1980s black and white prints in English to the neon pop colors you find in Japanese mags of the year 2000. It made it interesting for us to see them make containers out of these dusty reads, but in the end when the boxes were made, we filled them up with scented poutpourri and crystal bracelets/necklaces for all the girls at the party. The attic was cleared up in no time and the giveaways were fabulous! Heads up though -- people who receive these magazine paper creations will surely see what you’re reading!
Plastics
Take-out plastic Tupperwares, trinkets and things over here, Chinese take-out doesn’t come in NY fashion. Instead of tall cardboard boxes with aluminum wires, we get plastic Tupperware-type containers. What’s nice about them (especially the hard-plastic ones that come with a decent cover) is that you can clean up the containers, and reuse them as jewelry boxes, a piggybank, candy bowls, key holders, or as open storage for things like tea bags. You can wrap them up and staple some felt paper (black, wine red, dark orange, or purple work well) around the containers, then hot-glue trinkets and things to cover them up with style. Seashells, pieces of broken glass, colored beads that came from broken bracelets and accessories … anything small or light or eccentric enough, really … It all depends on your theme! You can even take a wine-cork and stick it at the center of the plastic lid (hopefully your take out came with one) to use as a fancy handle to open up your new memory box, which would hold all the tickets from your favorite concerts, plays, and shows.
Shot glasses
For an inuman session or pica-pica dinner, it could be fun to fill up your extra shot glasses with rock or iodized salt, herbs (like rosemary, oregano, parsley) or chili flakes and other spices. Otherwise, you can use them as ash trays, candle holders, or plate holders if you turn several of them over, put them together to make a stable plane, then have the plates rest on their bottoms.
Baby bottles
I don’t know if you are one to try this out, but just to give you an extra idea to see how far you can go with this … There is a strange bar here that serves alcoholic beverages in baby bottles. Weird? Well, the basic point of it is that alcohol hits you harder when you down it in this way -- so, partygoer, are you one to dance and drink the night away, sucking in the vodka through a tsupon? Hmm … I don’t know!
Wine bottles
It would be sad to throw wine bottles away! They work well as nice carafes (instead of pitchers) for water, iced tea, juices for breakfast, or chilled cocktail mixes ready to serve. You can also use them as flower vases. Long-stemmed flowers work well, orchids look classy in translucent olive green bottles. Paint over the glass bottles, tie a ribbon or old necklaces around the bottle necks, or strip the labels and leave the bottles as they are for a simple, elegant, organic look that will go with any table setting.
T-shirt quilt
I remember the comfort of our mayor doma’s homemade quilt from when I was 12 years old living in Boston. Knowing she sewed together pieces of her old dusters with her very hands made it cozier to sleep in. Putting together favorite pambahay T-shirts you’ve outgrown, or cutting out squares from your favorite T-shirt designs could be a little bit of work but with a little patience you’ll have the advantage of reliving happy moments in your dreams! Sewing together a kind of quilt from old, worn-out, but fabulous T-shirts that you don’t want to get rid of, might have the power to put you back in a great mood every time you get cozy with it on a roadtrip to the beach, the mountains, and other travels.
The results will all depend on what kind of person you are and what kind of world you move in, but the philosophy is the same for everyone: Work with what you have, here and now, and hopefully you get what you want out of life when you’ve done this long enough. There is so much more you can create and reuse -- just look around and remember the whole purpose of doing this is so that nothing, which still has the potential to be something great, is thrown to waste. Bisous, beautiful ones, and ciao for now!
By KC Concepcion
Inquirer
Editor's Note: Published on page C2 of the March 11, 2006 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer
SOMEONE always used to remind me that you have to do what you can, with what you have, where you are. Filipinos out here are extremely good at doing this, all the while keeping their dignity despite hardships in their lives while in a foreign land. Of course most OFWs are concerned with more serious issues that have little to do with figuring out how to recreate home stuff through the arts and crafts, but, we might learn a little something from their resourcefulness and abilidad!
To think we’re from a place where if you can afford something basic like eat 3 full meals a day, then you are already considered lucky, sometimes we just need to calm down on the wanting and the buying, and feeling guilty for not having the latest version of something. Yes I’m quite aware that this is coming from a product endorser, but, in the end, we just really do not have to have it all! Okay, for some I should at least say … we don’t need to have it all, ALL the time! Tsk tsk! Make use of what you already have, reinvent it, and feel good about it! Here are 10 happy ways to reuse things around the house ’cos the second time can surely be sweeter! Have fun!
Eyeglass frames
If you have kid sisters or brothers who have outgrown old but super fun children’s sunglasses, you don’t need to throw them out or give them away just yet. If they’ve lost the glass lenses, then even better, because you can use the lens parts of the eye glass frame as picture frames for close up shots or wideshots of nice views from places you’ve been to. Colors like hot pink or red, for example, work well with glossy black and white photos.
CDs
Scrap CDs can be strung together with nylon strings and hung up as retro curtains. Others use beads, while others use old CDs -- mostly CDs that contained documents and word files instead of something sacred like music. You can ask your colleagues or someone who works in an office to compile old CD-ROMs for you. The most interesting part is when the sun reflects on the discs and bounces onto your walls like bubbles. The first time I saw the effect it reminded me of how I would play with the “dancing bubbles” reflecting on airplane seats while light from the windows bounced off my lolo’s watch. Kids could have fun with this!
Earrings
When funky earrings go out of style and you would hate to throw them away, you can turn them into table napkin rings! Just remove the backs with pliers, hot-glue them onto a cord and tie them into a circle to form the rings. They will make table settings look special even when using cheap paper napkins.
‘Bayongs’ and baskets
Medium-sized fruit baskets or little bayongs mounted on the wall or resting on a desk can make for a cute, functional, contained spot for invitations, notes, pictures, bills, incoming and outgoing letters, catalogues, or magazines. You can mount the baskets up on the wall, one on top of the other or in a row, about four inches apart, using nails and screws. You can sew things into them for a subtle personal touch, too. Just make hand-written or computerized labels that you can attach to the baskets with masking tapes (“Bills,” “Mail,” “Sketch Designs,” “Ideas,” “Don’t Forget,” etc.). For younger sisters and brothers, you can hit two birds with one stone: Have bonding time fun and motivate them to do homework, too. Ask them to help you paint the baskets, or color the labels for them, then show them their new homework in-box! I’m sure my sister would enjoy doing her super cool preschool homework if she sees it popping out of a big, red, ladybug!
Magazines
Speaking of magazines, my mother and I can (ridiculously) fill up a whole attic with just old beauty and teen magazines alone. If you are like us, then it might be a good idea to spend one whole day sorting out the articles you still find useful, putting them into clear folders or plastic portfolios, and then separating the parts of the magazines you won’t read anymore. Once you’ve done that, you can send them to Samahan ng Muling Pagkabuhay Multipurpose Cooperative (727-0681) to make woven paper boxes and creations that you can use for gifts, gatherings, or give-aways for events. Three years ago, for my debut giveaways, we sent them the stacks of old magazines that ranged from the 1980s black and white prints in English to the neon pop colors you find in Japanese mags of the year 2000. It made it interesting for us to see them make containers out of these dusty reads, but in the end when the boxes were made, we filled them up with scented poutpourri and crystal bracelets/necklaces for all the girls at the party. The attic was cleared up in no time and the giveaways were fabulous! Heads up though -- people who receive these magazine paper creations will surely see what you’re reading!
Plastics
Take-out plastic Tupperwares, trinkets and things over here, Chinese take-out doesn’t come in NY fashion. Instead of tall cardboard boxes with aluminum wires, we get plastic Tupperware-type containers. What’s nice about them (especially the hard-plastic ones that come with a decent cover) is that you can clean up the containers, and reuse them as jewelry boxes, a piggybank, candy bowls, key holders, or as open storage for things like tea bags. You can wrap them up and staple some felt paper (black, wine red, dark orange, or purple work well) around the containers, then hot-glue trinkets and things to cover them up with style. Seashells, pieces of broken glass, colored beads that came from broken bracelets and accessories … anything small or light or eccentric enough, really … It all depends on your theme! You can even take a wine-cork and stick it at the center of the plastic lid (hopefully your take out came with one) to use as a fancy handle to open up your new memory box, which would hold all the tickets from your favorite concerts, plays, and shows.
Shot glasses
For an inuman session or pica-pica dinner, it could be fun to fill up your extra shot glasses with rock or iodized salt, herbs (like rosemary, oregano, parsley) or chili flakes and other spices. Otherwise, you can use them as ash trays, candle holders, or plate holders if you turn several of them over, put them together to make a stable plane, then have the plates rest on their bottoms.
Baby bottles
I don’t know if you are one to try this out, but just to give you an extra idea to see how far you can go with this … There is a strange bar here that serves alcoholic beverages in baby bottles. Weird? Well, the basic point of it is that alcohol hits you harder when you down it in this way -- so, partygoer, are you one to dance and drink the night away, sucking in the vodka through a tsupon? Hmm … I don’t know!
Wine bottles
It would be sad to throw wine bottles away! They work well as nice carafes (instead of pitchers) for water, iced tea, juices for breakfast, or chilled cocktail mixes ready to serve. You can also use them as flower vases. Long-stemmed flowers work well, orchids look classy in translucent olive green bottles. Paint over the glass bottles, tie a ribbon or old necklaces around the bottle necks, or strip the labels and leave the bottles as they are for a simple, elegant, organic look that will go with any table setting.
T-shirt quilt
I remember the comfort of our mayor doma’s homemade quilt from when I was 12 years old living in Boston. Knowing she sewed together pieces of her old dusters with her very hands made it cozier to sleep in. Putting together favorite pambahay T-shirts you’ve outgrown, or cutting out squares from your favorite T-shirt designs could be a little bit of work but with a little patience you’ll have the advantage of reliving happy moments in your dreams! Sewing together a kind of quilt from old, worn-out, but fabulous T-shirts that you don’t want to get rid of, might have the power to put you back in a great mood every time you get cozy with it on a roadtrip to the beach, the mountains, and other travels.
The results will all depend on what kind of person you are and what kind of world you move in, but the philosophy is the same for everyone: Work with what you have, here and now, and hopefully you get what you want out of life when you’ve done this long enough. There is so much more you can create and reuse -- just look around and remember the whole purpose of doing this is so that nothing, which still has the potential to be something great, is thrown to waste. Bisous, beautiful ones, and ciao for now!
Kulit Co. A Happy New Year Prayer ...for us to love more, do more, be more
By KC Concepcion
Inquirer
This is one of my favorite poems and I don't know what it's called! Here goes:
"It doesn't interest me
Inquirer
This is one of my favorite poems and I don't know what it's called! Here goes:
"It doesn't interest me
what you do for a living.
I want to know
what you ache for,
and if you dare to dream
of meeting your heart's longing.
It doesn't interest me
It doesn't interest me
how old you are.
I want to know
if you will risk
looking like a fool
for love,
for your dreams,
for the adventure of being alive.
It doesn't interest me
It doesn't interest me
what planets are
squaring your moon.
I want to know
if you have touched
the center of your own sorrow,
if you have been opened
by life's betrayals
or have become shriveled and closed
from fear of further pain!
I want to know
I want to know
if you can sit with pain,
mine or your own,
without moving to hide it
or fade it
or fix it.
I want to know
if you can be with joy,
mine or your own,
if you can dance with wilderness
and let the ecstasy fill you
to the tips of your fingers and toes
without cautioning us
to be careful, be realistic, or
to remember the limitations
of being human.
It doesn't interest me
It doesn't interest me
if the story you're telling me
is true,
I want to know if you can
disappoint another
to be true to yourself;
if you can bear
the accusation of betrayal
and not betray your own soul.
I want to know if you can be faithful (sic)
I want to know if you can be faithful (sic)
and therefore be trustworthy.
I want to know if you can see beauty
I want to know if you can see beauty
even when it is not pretty
every day,
and if you can source your life
from God's presence.
I want to know
I want to know
if you can live with failure,
yours and mine,
and still stand on the edge of a lake
and shout to the silver of the full moon,
"Yes!"
It doesn't interest me
It doesn't interest me
to know where you live
or how much money you have.
I want to know if you can get up
after the night of grief and despair,
weary and bruised to the bone,
and do what needs
to be done for the children.
It doesn't interest me
It doesn't interest me
who you are, (sic)
how you came to be here.
I want to know if you will stand
in the center of the fire
with me
and not shrink back.
It doesn't interest me
It doesn't interest me
where or what or with whom
you have studied.
I want to know
what sustains you
from the inside
when all else falls away.
I want to know
I want to know
if you can be alone
with yourself,
and if you truly like
the company you keep
in the empty moments."
Happy, happy new year everyone!
2003 has been so crazy, I can't even remember what went on. Anyway, for the next year, the new year coming right about now... I pray that the year 2004 will bring you the things you want, the things you need the wisdom to decipher the difference, the openness to embrace the unexpected, the happiness to still appreciate the predicted, and the heart to accept and to see beyond the imperfections in each other... to grow... to change.
I pray you touch the lives of others, more than you have before, in your own ways, sane or (for some) a bit drunken. I pray for us to love more, do more, be more... and for the young I pray that we are shown things about us, and all things, for more depth, and more clarity, so that we don't end up wasting our passions, elasticity and energy on things that will just die even sooner than we will.
There is so much we can do because we are young. Much, much more than we think... For the aged, I pray for that youth, at heart and in spirit, so that they realize and remember their purpose, their beauty, and their importance to their friends, their family, colleagues and employees... and the difference--big and small--that they have made, unknowingly, in the world.
They are so much more than they know. For all of us, I pray that we are able to make the ones we lovefeel that love, and have it, and own it, and love it so much, they have to bounce it back.
Happy, happy new year, everyone!
---
Viena: the poem is The Invitation by Oriah.
Happy, happy new year everyone!
2003 has been so crazy, I can't even remember what went on. Anyway, for the next year, the new year coming right about now... I pray that the year 2004 will bring you the things you want, the things you need the wisdom to decipher the difference, the openness to embrace the unexpected, the happiness to still appreciate the predicted, and the heart to accept and to see beyond the imperfections in each other... to grow... to change.
I pray you touch the lives of others, more than you have before, in your own ways, sane or (for some) a bit drunken. I pray for us to love more, do more, be more... and for the young I pray that we are shown things about us, and all things, for more depth, and more clarity, so that we don't end up wasting our passions, elasticity and energy on things that will just die even sooner than we will.
There is so much we can do because we are young. Much, much more than we think... For the aged, I pray for that youth, at heart and in spirit, so that they realize and remember their purpose, their beauty, and their importance to their friends, their family, colleagues and employees... and the difference--big and small--that they have made, unknowingly, in the world.
They are so much more than they know. For all of us, I pray that we are able to make the ones we lovefeel that love, and have it, and own it, and love it so much, they have to bounce it back.
Happy, happy new year, everyone!
---
Viena: the poem is The Invitation by Oriah.
http://www.oriahmountaindreamer.com/
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)