To lead or not to lead

An expat gave me a pat in the back a while ago… After all the talk, he said to me, “you have good leadership skills…”

He was talking about how he thinks me dragging along several people to eat salad during lunch was cool. He said what I did to a trimmed-down client was amazing. He never even thought I could convince a guy in his department to munch fresh veggies for lunch.

Whew! That got me! All throughout grade school, high school and college I had been leading teams but never got such a comment; straight-forward and non-superficial as that. I know I have the gift to convince and influence people, and have somehow thought I’m a better leader than a manager when my hubby and I discuss about the differences between the two positions.

Then I realized what if I changed career paths and do something that will complement my “leadership skills”.

Hey

Okay, so i'm back to the blogging world...

Hmmmm it has been sooo long! My family just came back from a long vacation. I just survived an emotional stress lurking deep inside me for long. I'm back to the gym again, where I am blogging now.

Hmmmm there's so much to say, too little time.

Later....

Me! Me! Me!

Okay, so after the realizations and goal-settings, here's me, doing more of those if-then-else analyses than i ever did in my life. After being submissive and content with what i have, this time i'm aiming for more. My baby is now three, giving me more freedom to rediscover myself. Hubby's also doing something with his career. Little bro living with us now finds stable life in university. And i'm more than just glad to see the people around me progressing in their own little ways. This time, it's me, me, me.

28!

So how does a new 28 year old feel?

Excited for the remaining two years before I turn 30. This is the best time to realize you need to attain more serious goals in life. Mine would include passing JLPT 4 this year, and JLPT 3 next year; add 'sr.' to my current title at work; earn enough to renovate our house to include a tiny veranda on the second floor, a multimedia room for hubby and a paint/sketch/drawing room for me (next to the window, of course); have a grand family vacation including mom, dad and bros; give something to help build my folks' new home. I can never ask for more in my life as a wife and mother. I think the remaining two years before becoming 30 is enough to accomplish those selfish dreams.

Trying to get by

Money has been frequently dwelling on my mind the past few weeks. It probably started when me and hubby decided to manage each of our own monies and split on every household bill. Although I bring in less bacon than he does, which means there would be so little or even a virtually negative amount left for me after paying the bills, I think it’s generally a good thing. This set-up pushes me to aim high, do more, and become the person I want to be. In my pursuit to develop my writing skills and earn from it, I recently subscribed to a site where I could bid for freelance projects. I’m still at the building-my-profile stage, and just a minute ago I received an email from the site reminding me that I need to get my butt in there and contribute to their business. I’m planning to spend a few more hours tonight to polish my profile and maybe start bidding for jobs. I need to earn an additional 4k a month (at least) to pay my extra bills. I hope this thing works for me.

On the other hand, I feel so fortunate that despite my being broke, I have a family to make me embrace life’s beauty. My son’s fast becoming a “big boy”, as he says it. He’s becoming very assertive, observant, funny, independent, inclined to eating fish than pork, beef or cold cuts, and … really obsessed with trains. His dad bought him another set this weekend (in lieu of the time he spent at the office on a Sat). The kiddo was so into it last night he went to bed a little more late than he used to. And of course, the unsceasing playback of The Polar Express for the entire weekend, and Youtube's Thomas the Train episodes, which added to the spirit. He never gets tired of anything trains-related. What concerns me though is his dad being too glad about his son’s obsessions. I used to see those beaming eyes from my dad’s friends when they see their sons do something naughty. And those eyes always made me feel like they seem to pose potential trouble. But, anyway, hubby says he sees himself in our son the obsession, or to put it better, the passion he had for something. He thinks the little tyke is likely to succeed in life just like daddy. I think so, too.

Broke-back

Today was the first time I was able to actually feel that I own what I earned. I withdrew some money to hand my brother his tuition fee, had a yummy ramen for P85 at a Japanese resto, and was able to buy a toiletries purse by cash. I thought it was the most liberated thing I have ever done for the last few years. The moment I browsed into the shelves of purses, I realized I need to find the right item – not-so-expensive but really useful. And I’m glad I did. I paid it in cash. And the moment just brought me to those days when I was single and had the opportunity to think ahead, think of the consequences of this purchase. Hell, I felt so alive! And yes, broke.

Japanese TV series

After having finished two Japanese live TV series (Hana Yori Dango and Oniyome Diary), I decided to purchase another DVD to again immerse myself into Japanese culture, and yes, the language. It has been four years since I started learning nihongo and until now I still haven’t acquired any JLPT license. I flunked my JLPT 3 last 2006. Then I missed my JLPT 4 in 2007 to attend a business trip in the US. This means I need to get back on track. I’m taking this year’s JLPT again, though. And yes, I’m taking JLPT 4 as I realized taking JLPT 3 is far too ambitious.

And so, after I digress, let’s get back to the supposed main topic. I was so delighted by the last two DVDs that I watched both whole seasons again. And yes, I have talked about and introduced and recommended them to my family and friends as well. Hana Yori Dango sort of revives the romantic in me. It’s one of those romeo-and-julietesque stories we see on TV. But what I liked most about this teen-oriented drama is that it gave me some idea on how the poor and rich live in Japan. I have been a long time anything-about-Japan fan, but I never thought there were still poor people living in 35sqm homes and on fried chicken skin for dinner, in a first-world country with the second-largest economy in the whole living planet! Weird, but it was enlightening. Having researched about living expenses in Japan days later, I realized it isn’t really easy surviving in Japan. Everything is sky-rocket expensive. I remember checking for capsule hotel prices. The cheapest I could find starts at 3,000yen for a night. Wow, that’s about the same price as a nice 2-star hotel for a night here in Manila! And that a yummy bowl of ramen costs around 850yen. That’s like eating for three in a comfortable restaurant here in Manila. By the way, I got the latter info from this other DVD that I was gaga over – Oniyome Diary. This one, on the other hand, shows the daily lives of mid-income married couples in Tokyo. I like this DVD more because as a wife, I can easily relate to the scenes. It’s about a timid, but scheming husband who maintains a blog where he can express all the misery he feels about his wife. The wife, although a little too strong-willed, I think isn’t so bad. She always has a reason for everything – damn good reasons. That’s why the hubby continues to be submissive, and resorts to his blog as his confidant. Besides its being very rich in Japan’s cultural exposure, the actors were superb and everything is well-thought out and very comic. Every time I watch it I’m giggling and laughing I almost fall from my seat. Well, maybe because I could relate to the story lines, too.

The new DVDs I bought are titled Oishii Proposal and Saito-san. I have already started digging into Oishii Proposal, a story about an independent, strong-willed, single woman in her late 20s. I’m still trying to finish the second episode. I chose it from among the flock in the DVD shelf because I have a friend who’s also in the marriageable age and is also very independent. So far, it’s okay. But based on ratings, this one rated well on its first run. Numbers spiraled down in the second up to the last then went up again in its last run. It’s drama, so I guess I won’t expect more giggles when I watch it again maybe some time this weekend. I guess I’m just not really into drama. Saito-san, I haven’t started yet. What got me to buying it is because it’s about a single mom – it has truly different story lines (I hope) from the ones I watched. For a change, I’d like to know how single moms do it to raise kids alone in a very expensive and industrialized country like Japan. So, my weekend’s already booked. Maybe I’ll have those ripped and converted to iTunes video so that I could watch them while commuting. Hmmmm…