oh what a year...

"year's end is neither an end nor a beginning but a going on, 

with all the wisdom that experience can still in us..."

- hal borland

**MARCH 2014 - completed my very first 1/2 marathon...even with minimal training...

**MAY 2014 - backpacking across Central America...one of the items on my bucket list...

**AUGUST 2014 - after a decade with no car (which by the way is not a necessity for me here in NYC), i bought one..and yes, it's orange...LIKE!!!

the best one of all does not have a picture.  why is that?  this past OCTOBER 2014, i resigned from job.  it was the first and only company that i worked for after graduating from college.  how long was i there?  let's just say over a decade..or was it two :)  it was tough decision to make but it was time for me to move on...to learn new things...and improve in my field.

2014 was great to me.  i just hope 2015 will be the same.

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

and blue for the boys...

since i went with fuchsia for the ladies, i decided to go with the classic printed blue for the boys...with blue ribbons of course...

**just the right amount of masculinity...

christmas tree 2014...

for this year, i have to set-up not only one or two trees....this year, it was tree (got it, tree).  

**this is the real tree decorated in red and white...

**main christmas tree...

**plastic tree i bought this year decorated with butterflies and christmas balls...

**tree in the foyer...

**personal mini-tree decorated with hallmark keepsake ornaments...

**mini-tree...my personal tree.

winter run...

home-run last night inside central park...while snowing...

**bethesda fountain...

**NikeNYC Running Club...

**that's me with my friend Jamie...

**photo credit: NikeNYC

fuchsia for the ladies...

as the year comes to an end in a few weeks, i decided to continue my obsession with patterns until the end.  i'm going with a floral inspired fuchsia wrapper with a pink ribbon for the lovely ladies in my life.

**shinning and shimmering...

 

a tiffany&co holiday..

while window shopping along 5th ave, i saw this on the holiday window display @Tiffany&Co.

**modern family...

more balls...

christmas is just a few weeks away and i am feeling the pressure of my motif for the tree this year.  it sucks that my creative juices is not working - i do not why.  i guess i am just going to wing it.  i am definitely using what i have in storage and as mr. tim gun (of project runaway) would say, "make it work".

in the meantime, i got these lovely paper mache holiday balls this weekend to add to my collection.  it will definitely add color to the tree this year :)

**balls from homegoods...

 

NY Public Library...

i decided to lounge around the NYPL main branch on 5th ave earlier today.  had an hour and half to waste before i head to my running club.  

me want some cookie...

**mrs. thinster's cookie thins...

currently one of my guilty pleasures.  these cookie thins from mrs. thinster's are just so damn delicious.  it is so wrong but at the same time, it is very right.

to visit their website, you can to mrsthinters.com.

weekend trip to raleigh...

last weekend, my friend and i - well it was more of an "i" - drove from nyc to north carolina to a attend a former co-worker/friend's wedding.  it was basically an 8 hrs drive - non-stop - one way.  i would have prefer to fly but my friend - who is also a former co-worker - was not really into taking the big bird.  so, it was no-brainer that it we will have a roadtrip.

**wall art along the street of raleigh, north carolina

**sunny's diner, raleigh, north carolina

**my friend jenna who was excited to eat breakfast.  who knew that anything outside NYC is cheap!!!

**wall art along the street of raleigh, north carolina

**everything was walking distance...

**lilly's pizza...highly recommended.  jenna got plain pizza with mozzarella cheese; i got pepperoni, mozzarella, fresh mushrooms, and black olives.. 

**(l-r) abby; dana (bride); jenna, and some randon guy :)...former co-workers...

i'm pretty in pink...

lapel pins do make a plain jacket more.........exciting!!!

**real men can wear pink....just saying!!!

oh well...

last night i was suppose to meet someone for a drink or two....a first date if you may.  by time i got to the bar, i guess my date got the cold feet and cancelled on me the last minute.  oh well, not my lost.  i had a great time with myself, my cerveza, and new friends i met on the bar.

**not the pix from last night.  just remembering my Imperial in Costa Rica...

hudson valley trip...

since the kids - my nieces and nephews - are off this yesterday and today due to the jewish holiday, the whole family decided to take today off and have a day excursion to the hudson valley area here in NY.  for us NY city residents, anything outside the city is the countryside.  yes, it might sound shallow but it's a reality.

anyway, we - meaning I - agreed to do take the hudson river sightseeing cruise in the town of kingston, ny.  took us about 2 hours by car to get it there but it was worth it.

the kids enjoy the break from the city while the adults just relaxed and viewed the scenery.

**still an active unmanned lighthouse...

**view of the dock area in kingston,ny... 

**old barge...

**one of the many mansions along the hudson valley....you will be mine someday :)

**the last wooden light-house in the hudson valley...

**kids enjoying the trip...NOT!!!

**well at least one of them did...

addicted to prints and colours...

as a follow-up from my post yesterday, i was determined to get more decorative pillows for my daybed.  went to a few stores but found only one (a pair) that caught my eye.

**decorative pillows from (l) home goods and (r) ikea...

on a similar note, one of the stores we went to was ABC Furniture.  for my NYC friends, this place is synonymous for vintage and expensive home decorations.  they do sell new products as well and i found this bathroom rug.  i just laugh because i remember doing a rug like this back when i was in grade school.

**this was a home economics project back in the grade school days...

**still pricey even if it was on sale...

sleepyheads....

after two long years of searching for a sofa bed (see 2012 Project post for details), i finally bought one.  technically it's not a sofa bed but a daybed.  what is the difference between the two?  a sofa bed is sofa that can be converted into a bed while a daybed is used as beds as well as for lounging, reclining and seating in a common room.

i actually discovered it a few months ago with my mom and sister while browsing around ikea.  at that time, they were out of stock.  after checking it a couple of weeks ago, they finally got it so i bought one.

i love that it's made of metal - which means it will last for a long time.

**love the bright colour of this throw pillow...also from ikea

**need to buy more throw pillows..

the british are coming...

the past few weeks was just pure mayhem that i neglected to post anything.  there was a drama at work (not going to say what it is), got something new and big (which i will post in the next few days), and my british cousin and her family visited NYC for two (2) full weeks.

it was their first time here in the US.  with limited time, i organized their full itinerary for the whole trip.  my sister and i took a week off from work starting with my sister taking the first week while i did the second.  the first week consist of mostly NYC landmarks - liberty, times square, rock center, central park to name a few.  the second week - which was designated to me - started with a trip to Niagara Falls and Toronto during the labor day weekend with the WHOLE family, doing some more NYC landmarks like the bronx zoo, 9/11 memorial, and ending it with a trip to Washington, DC.

all in all, it was a successful and fun vacation for my cousin and her family.  they just left to head back to UK this afternoon.  i am bit tired and glad that it was over.....what can i say, i did ALL the driving part.

**colourful benches @ niagara falls...

**hoping there's a gold at the end of the rainbow @ niagara falls...

**old building @ roosevelt island, NYC...

**view of long island city, queens @ roosevelt island, NYC...

**rebuilding of lower manhattan...

victrory...

my running club is "semi" back.  "semi" because it's not the old running club that i used to go to every tuesday and thursday where you can just show-up.  you actually have to RSVP every sunday to the upcoming week's run.

in any case, my nike running club had a special guest in today's run. everyone got a nike t-shirt with the word victoryrory written in-front of the shirt.  no one really paid attention what it meant until the guest was introduce to us before we started running.

want to guess who it was?

it's none other than rory mcilroy, the current # 1 golf player in the world right now.  #WTF!!!  it was just surreal.  a  none runner joining us for a run.  #AWESOME!!!  

be inspired...

it's not too often i find a story very inspiring but this one for some reason makes me want to do something.  

i was surfing (i.e. stalking) my FB account when one of my friends posted a story about her cousin, mark bustos.  he is a stylist at one of the posh salon here in NYC who goes out every weekend and provide free haircut to the homeless.  wouldn't that motivate you??

if you want to read more about mr.  bustos, please click the links below:

@huffingtonpost: stylist who spends every sunday cutting hair for the homeless: 'every human life is worth the same'

@philippinestar: filipino who cuts hair of new york's homeless 

**photo credit: mark bustos' instagram... 

after work fun...

not too often my colleagues (and former colleagues) and i would go out for some fun time after work...

**(l to r): dominicana, filipino, taiwanese, new yorker (dominican), ecuadorian, trini...

oh captain my captain...

he is known as the genie from aladdin, patch adams, peter from hook, mork from mindy and mork, and so forth.  but for me, he will always be mrs. doubtfire.

may you rest in peace mr. robin williams...oh captain my captain...

nike WHY!!!!!!

**credit: newyorkobserver

as i mentioned in my previous post, Nike is ending my running club and introducing an "evolution" of the current club.  i am not happy...and so are the 3,000++ members.

i run just because...

**my Nike RUNNYC family...discussions inside central park

as most of you already know, i am part of a running club here in NYC.  i've been running with the Nike Running Club for about 3-4 years now.  most of my running buddies are marathon runners or training for a marathon.  one of our female runner is actually representing Nepal in this years Asian Games - imagine that.  but there's a few of us who just run because we love to run.  the club is our second family.

this past weekend, the facebook page of my running club became very active.  everyone started having a discussion of changes being made within the club.  one of them is that in order for anyone who wants to run on a specific day, you must register otherwise you are on your own.  yes, you read it right, you must RSVP otherwise better luck next time.  crazy right??

this past tuesday, rep from Nike came to a town hall meeting type gathering to discuss about the change.  one of the rep mentioned that they interviewed members of the club a few months ago.  my friend jamie and i looked at each because neither one of us were interview.  both us were consistent on our weekly runs even during the winter time when the number of runners tend to be smaller.  we both knew that it was a #lie.  it was suppose to be a Q&A meeting but it was more of Q but no A.  we figured that the changes were a done deal already.  there was suppose to be a town hall meeting again tonight but the reps cancelled - surprise surprise.

it was a heavy feeling while we run tonight knowing that this maybe the last time we, the nike running club, will be running together not as a team or a club but as a family.  we know that we will bump into each other during the races here in NY or anywhere in the world but still, it different when you run with family.