linking up: bc bloggers 4

I've been enjoying blogging for a while now and I've decided to take it up a notch. I'll be grabbing this chance to join BC Bloggers 4.

Click here for more info

If you're a blogger and you're looking for new friends in the blogosphere, want more traffic in your site and/or want an easy way to link up, this is for you. Hop over to Paula's Place to find out how to register your blog. Really simple and convenient. :)

girls talk: i love the spiritual and mental side of me

I didn't have time to participate in Girls Talk last week, so I'll be inserting the I Love Me Mentally below too. I'll try to make this quick as I have to head out pretty soon


I Love The Spiritual Aspect of Me

I am a follower of Christ, and I'm proud of it. I am not the religious type - I'm a bit of an asker, a rebel of sorts, admittedly not a very nice person.

But I love God immensely - though imperfectly.
I love church - though I must confess I don't go every Sunday.
I love the Bible - but I admit I don't read it daily.

Following Christ is really not about tradition or "the things we've gotten used to". I personally prefer a more practical, relevant and honest faith. A meaningful religion is about knowing the Lord and growing in him. It's about loving God above all things and loving your neighbor as yourself. I'm not the poster girl for this (i.e., I've got a lot of flaws and stuff), but in some way God is still able to use me to bless others.

I love that I am imperfect, because it makes me see how much I need God. Don't get me wrong though - I don't settle in my weaknesses; if i had my way, I'd slake all my imperfections off. It's just that I celebrate God's grace daily, not having to pretend to be someone I am not.

There's more of my brand of spirituality in my other blog, the (ir)reverend.


I Love The Mental Aspect of Me

When it comes to the mental part, I am what I call an aberration - and I am proud of it. I happen to be bipolar: I was born with a chemical imbalance that causes cyclical shifts in emotion and energy levels. People think it's a psychological disorder, but it's actually a biological one - kind of like a disability that has no cure.

Wait- it's not as tragic as it sounds. :D I quite think it's a blessing. I look normal and act normal; bipolars aren't "crazy". In fact we tend to be very talented and brilliant. A lot of artists, musicians, poets, politicians, theorists and history-makers are bipolar. This will seem like bragging, but I'm just stating a fact: because of this condition, I happen to be very intense and genius-prone.

Most people either left-brain dominant (logical, analytical) or right-brain dominant (artistic, emotional). I happen to be both, being able to switch as needed. I also have this capacity for abstract thinking - something that is rare among women.

The downside is that all this giftedness comes with mood swings, nasty thought patterns and a general challenge in managing life. :p

I discuss more about being bipolar in my other blog, Soul Marmalade.


And that's it for now. To check out what the other Girls Talkers have to share, shimmy over to Beauty Queen Gene.

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i love pesto

Basic Pesto Recipe

I love how the rains make the herbs in our garden grow bigger and faster. When there is a flourishing, that means yummy recipes. One of the things I like making out of our garden greens is Pesto.

Everybody likes pesto. You walk into a restaurant, that's all you hear: pesto, pesto, pesto.

- Seinfeld's George Costanza

Ingredients

• 1 packed cup fresh basil leaves (or 2-4 loosely packed cups)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup olive oil
• 1/2 cup of pine nuts or walnuts, crushed (subsitute: Cashew)
• 1/2 cup of parmesan cheese, grated (substitute: Edam or Queso de Bola)
  

Note: Make sure the leaves have been thoroughly washed, and then blotted dry after washing.
You don't want any excess water on them because (1) wet leaves will clump and will be messy; and (2) the water will diminish the flavor.

Procedure

Mince the basil and oregano leaves in a blender or food processor.
* The traditional way is to use a knife and / or mortar and pestle, but that will take ages)

Add the garlic, nuts and cheese. Blend.
* Be careful not to overdo it; you'd want the leaves to look very finely chopped, and the mixture smooth but not too souplike.

Pour into a bowl and stir in the olive oil.


Serving Suggestions

• Serve over pasta. Pesto can be used as a pasta sauce by itself, or with chicken flakes and/ or sun-dried tomatoes on the side. Pesto can also be drizzled on top of red or white sauce to add extra tang.
• Slather over fish or chicken dishes. Real good!
• Spread over garlic bread.
• Mix with mayo or all-purpose cream and use as dip.
• Use as a sandwich spread to spruce up a burger or chicken sandwich.
• Add a few spoonfuls to chicken soup or tomato soup for that Mediterranean-ish taste.
• Stir into risotto or plain rice.
• Mix into mashed potatoes.
• Bake into pastries.
• Drizzle over a baked potato or tomato for a unique side dish.

girls talk: i love me money-wise (i love the financial side of me)

This week on we're sharing about how we love the money side of or lives.

I never thought I'd ever say that I love the financial side of me. I'm not earning as much as want to, but I'm keeping things positive and finding the silver linings. ^_^

For one, at least the Hubby has a good job. We're not deep in debt, not starving, and we are still able to buy our needs and some wants. We can sometimes afford to share with others.

I've been working from home for some time now, but there's a bit of an ouch there because the online job ended just yesterday (It's a long story I'd rather not go into, because I'd rather keep this blog positive, hee hee).

Still, things are good because I have a little hobby-turned business of sorts. For those who haven't read yet, I make unique fashion accessories and sell them online. I right now have a "shop" on Multiply. I have another one on Artfire that I hope will attract buyers from other countries, but I still have to study shipping rates and stuff. I've also made an account on Etsy but I haven't posted anything yet.

So far so good. ^_^ I make the most sales are around Christmas and Mother's Day.

Recently I looked into earning through placing ads on my blogs. I've been checking out a couple of advertisers and taking my time to read the Terms and Conditions / Agreements, and I want to thoroughly think things over before clicking on "I Agree". I still haven't agreed to some because I want to make sure there isn't any catch. Still feeling things out. I have no problems so far, but I haven't made anything yet either, haha :p . I know there's supposed to be a strategy to that, but I haven't been doing it long enough to give it much thought, so I guess I'll learn as a go along.

what i like about the rainy days

There are some things about summer that I miss - like summer fruits, clear night skies and beach-trips - but still I'm glad for the change in season. I'm so happy the heat wave is over; I don't really mind the rain right now. And for everything I dislike about the cold, wet, rainy months, there are a lot about it that I love:


1. The sound of rain on the roof.
- Particularly the rhythmic pattering of a light shower. The thunderous drumming during a storm could be scary at times, but there's also something soothing about the drone.

2. The cooler weather.
Of course. ^_^

3. Layered clothes.
It pretty much comes with the cool weather. One of the things I dread about the summer is that it' always too hot to wear anything. Now that July has swung by, it's easier to get stylish with layering.

4. The nightly lightning show.
The kind without thunder, I mean. There's something so beautiful about the white fire dancing in the sky, slightly veiled by clouds. They remind me somewhat of flickering candles in paper lanterns

5. The way the herbs grow bigger and faster
I love basil, rosemary, mint and the other herbs in our garden. They dry up a pit in the summer, but come rainy season, they grow lush and fragrant. I can pick them straight from the garden and add them to my fave dishes. There is usually an abundance that we can share the harvest with our friends.

real women

I quite enjoyed Girl's Talk yesterday. ^_^ I mean, I always enjoy Girls Talk but yesterday was especially refreshing because it was so nice to hear from real women about what they loved about their bodies.

When I say real women, I mean us regular people who aren't surgically-enhanced, airbrushed celebrity goddesses.

I've gotten tired of the daily media barrage of the made-over Angelinas, the Marians and the Next Top Models reinforcing the lie in our minds that beauty is necessarily 1 : 1.618. Real women are beautiful too - including their stretchmarks, c-section scars and a few extra pounds here and there.

It was very pleasant to even read about how the Girls Talkers appreciate even their imperfections, and how the people they love appreciate them too.

Women are made beautiful by their confidence, their kindness and how they touch other people. And as I've come to believe, sexy is an attitude. I'm loving the Dove campaign that feature ladies of different shapes and ages and show them all as beautiful.

TV and the movies might want to stereotype "ordinary-looking women" into supporting or comedic roles - but we are the leading ladies of our own lives, the celebrity goddesses of our own husbands and children.

girls talk: i love me (i love the physical part of me)

I love how in Girls Talk this month we're appreciating ourselves - a "counting of blessings" of sorts. This week it's about what I like about myself physically.

I don't usually celebrate my looks, but I suppose there's got to be something about me that I love. Hmmm.

Let's put up a picture for fun.


Well. ^_^

I love my eyes. They're expressive and large and they've got that nice almond shape that make them fun to get all made-up.

I appreciate that I'm a bit on the chubby curvy, full side. I'm glad the Hubby likes that too.

And love my height. I'm not exactly tall, but I'm glad that I'm neither too tall nor too small.