<div style="text-align: justify;">New Year’s Day, first day of the year, January 1 in the Gregorian calendar. In the Middle Ages most European countries used the Julian calendar and observed New Year's Day on March 25, called Annunciation Day and celebrated as the occasion on which it was revealed to Mary that she would give birth to the Son of God.<br /><br />With the introduction of the Gregorian calendar in 1582, Roman Catholic countries began to celebrate New Year's Day on January 1. Scotland accepted the Gregorian calendar in 1600; Germany, Denmark, and Sweden about 1700; and England in 1752.<br /><br />Traditionally the day has been observed as a religious feast, but in modern times the arrival of the New Year has also become an occasion for spirited celebration and the making of personal resolutions.<br /><br />In the Philippines, we celebrate New Year always with a big bang. Tradionally, Filipinos attend the midnight mass, then the whole clan would eat together in what we call "Media Noche".The feast would usually consist of Pinoy native favorites like suman, sapin-sapin, lechon - roasted pig, pancit palabok and other viands. The new year feast is another testament to the Filipino's love of food, good company and merriment.<br /><br />Filipinos have also embraced the Chinese belief that loud noices would drive away evil spirits so we use a lot of firecrackers. In the past years though, we have seen an increase of firecracker explosion accident victims and this has spurred a goverment campaign of avoiding the use of firecrackers but instead use other alternative noisemakers like the "torotot" - an improvised trumpet which is really popular with kids. A lot of cities have also started to hold free new year parties with shows and fireworks displays so there's no need to light your own firecrackers but instead watch it all for free..<br /><br />Cheers to the New Year, 2009!<br /><br /></div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">A lot of people want to be in the medical profession. Most of them though are unable to pursue this dream because of time and financial constraints. Being a doctor or a nurse takes a lot of time as well as a big chunk of financial resources.<br /><br />Nowadays, though there are several career choices open in the health care field which doesn't require one to spend a lot of time and money. There are several technical areas like dental assistant, massage therapy, medical assistant, pharmacy technician etc.<br /><br />Pharmacy technicians in particular are very important in the health care industry as they assist pharmacists with technical tasks. They are usually tasked with entering prescriptions into a computer, maintaining records and inventories of drugs and supplies, stocking, packaging and pricing medications.<br /><br />If you are then thinking of shifting into the health care profession, check out this source for <a href="http://www.career-education.net/pharmacy-technician.htm">pharmacy tech schools</a>.<br /></div>
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I love hibiscus (gumamela) flowers! My mother has a collection of them and I took several snapshots last time I went home. Don't you just love the bold colors?<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rL6S29cT-o0/SVb-uSNDz8I/AAAAAAAACIQ/1S5TVgJGfv0/s1600-h/Picture 033.jpg">

<div style="text-align: justify; font-family: trebuchet ms;">We are now more or less done with furnishing our house and on the start of the new year were all set to fix the front of our house. Of course, I'd want to have some <a href="http://www.planterixchange.com/">decorative planters</a>. I grew up with both parents who are so into gardening so we have lots of indoor and <a href="http://www.planterixchange.com/">outdoor planters</a> in my childhood home.<br /><br />I guess one of the reasons why I want a lot of plants in our new home is just to make me feel more at home and miss my family less. Plants also give any place a really cool ambiance and a unique feel so I want a lot of greens in our place. The only constraint is that our place now has such a limited space so we really have to choose with care which <a href="http://www.planterixchange.com/">garden planters</a> to use to maximize the space yet still manage to look creative, unique and organized.<br /></div><br /><a style="font-family: trebuchet ms;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rL6S29cT-o0/SVb2HfA48vI/AAAAAAAACHI/74_RihpPlbs/s1600-h/3002-01.gif">

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<div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:'trebuchet ms';">ot this on my inbox this morning and I just found it absolutely fascinating. Don't ask me where it is I really have no idea where it is. If you know, please do drop me a comment :) I'm guessing it's China coz of the Buddha and what looks like the Great Wall..</span><br /></div><div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_rL6S29cT-o0/SUn58IUXw7I/AAAAAAAACGg/_FsLDtwBinA/s1600-h/ice8.jpg">

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<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">I took this photos a few months back in Cavite, Philippines. I just thought of posting it now coz I miss home so much. Most afternoons, if the weather is nice, my husband, my daughter and I would usually take leisurely walks near our place and I would usually end up taking photos of the sunsets.. Beautiful, isn't it?</span><br /></div><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rL6S29cT-o0/ST4NmmxDqVI/AAAAAAAACFA/A9ZBmtuJYCI/s1600-h/DSC04873.JPG">

<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">On</span><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">e </span><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">of the thing</span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_rL6S29cT-o0/STy8icp_sGI/AAAAAAAACEo/gFLAfIp8QiU/s1600-h/th____sun.jpg">

<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">A friend of mine has been asking if I'm feeling homesick. I said, not yet. It'll probably hit me during the next few weeks because I know I'll be missing Christmas in the Philippines.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">There are times though I kinda feel lonely and what I'd do is to head over to USA Donuts to get some sugar fix and it's somehow enough to make me feel a little better. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">It also helps that internet calling to the Philippines from here in Phnom Penh is really cheap. Just about 200 Riels, roughly about 2.00 Pesos per minute. Chatting is also helping a great deal in keeping homesickness at bay.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">For now, I'm busy still fixing up our house, I've taken up a new project hehe sorting out photos, getting them on digital format, then making a short movie or compilation. When January comes, I'll be busier looking for some part time work. And of course, I keep my sites updated (somehow..) among others..</span><br /><br /><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">I found this online and I can't resist not posting it.. Cool but weird huh! Definitely for the nerdy but ultimate fashionista..</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">It'll be way cooler if you can use the keys for real!</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rL6S29cT-o0/STdwgWGpj3I/AAAAAAAACD4/7OVWAz4n6Bs/s1600-h/Nerd_Girl_Shoes.jpg">

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<div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: trebuchet ms; text-align: justify;">I did write about getting an online education in my other blog. That time it was just a plan but I'm now serious about it and have started to prepare the requirements for admissions in a Philippine open university.<br /><br />There are actually a lot of online education programs now available. If you are considering getting an online education, go with an institution that is credible and accredited by governing education<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rL6S29cT-o0/STDHUsmRvGI/AAAAAAAACDo/5rSmT7n9mNY/s1600-h/logo.jpg">

<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">I love spring rolls! Here's a seafood variant which my daughter and husband really loves. It's healthy, easy to make and really yummy!</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Ingredients:</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">2 1/2 kg turnips (singkamas)</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">50 g dried prawns - wash and drain</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">8 tbsp cooking oil</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">1 cup cold water</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">1 1/2 tsp salt</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">1 kg crab</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">500 g small prawns</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">4 pairs Chinese sausages</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">8 eggs</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">6 pcs soya bean cake (tokwa)</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">1 cup sweet black sauce</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">3 whole garlic pound to a fine paste</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">400 g fresh red chillies - pound to a fine paste</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">1 1/2 cup roasted peanuts, chopped coarsely</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">5 stalks Chinese parsely - wash and remove roots</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">1 pkg spring roll wrapper or 600 g freshly made spring roll wrappers</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">PROCEDURE:</span><br /></div><ul style="font-family: trebuchet ms; text-align: justify;"><li>Peel turnips , slice and cut into thin julienne strips. Wash and drain.</li><li>Heat 5 tbsp oil in wok over high flame, put in dried prawns and fry for 1 min.</li><li>Add in the turnips and stir fry for 2 mins.</li><li>Add in 1 tsp salt, 1 cup water and mix well.</li><li>Cover wok and simmer until soft. Remove to a serving plate.</li><li>With a sharp knife, chop off the claws and legs of crabs. Pull body away from shell and cut body into halves. Remove and discard messy intestines and grey gills form either side of the body. Wash and drain.</li><li>Place crab on top of steaming rack. Cover and steam for 30 minutes. Dig out the meat from the bod and extract meat from claws and legs. Set aside.</li><li>Wash and drain prawns. Steam for 3-5 minutes. Remove from shell and devein.</li><li>Wash sausage and steam. Cut into thin slices.</li><li>Break eggs into a bowl, add in 3 tbsp oil, 1/2 tsp salt and beat lightly. Grease pan lightly. Pour egg mixture thinly into pan. When cooked, remove and cut into thin strips.</li><li>Heat oil in work over medium flame, fry bean curd cake until light brown on both sides. Remove and cut into thin strips.</li><li>Lay out various ingredients on the dinner table.</li><li>Place a spring roll wrapper on a dinner plate, spread 1 tsp sweet soy sauce or oyster sauce evenly on the wrapper.</li><li>Spread garlic and chili evenly.</li><li>Heap 2 tbsp turnips then sprinkle on crab meat, prawns, sausages, omelette, bean cake, peanuts and parsley.</li><li>Roll and seal with little water.</li></ul><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';">Just when I thought our first month here in Phnom Penh would be really okay, my husband had to be rushed to the hospital because of gastric ulcer. For sometime he has been complaining about burning sensation in his stomach and he kept postponing going for medical check up.<br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';">It was a really scary and stressfull experience for me since I am not fluent in Khmer language and I don't know how to talk to the doctors etc. Most of them don't know much English though some could speak French which I don't understand myself.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';">Thankfully, my in-laws are really supportive and understanding of the fact that I still haven't adjusted to the way things are done here. We were lucky also that we brought him to a governement hospital with complete facilities so he got the necessary treatments. </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';">I've been feeling really helpless these past few days and it did motivate me to really learn about how to be more independent here. Well, I could at least start to learn how to drive a motorbike so I could drive out on my own..</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';">He developed gastric ulcer coz of his habit of having exactly three meals a day and no snacks. He's now well and at least he's learning to eat smaller meals and take snacks. Getting sick in a foreign place is really difficult so I better stay healthy hmm.. </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Previously, I have featured Apple Art, Crop Art, Sand Sculpture, Urban Paintings.. Here's another Feast for the Eyes feature.. Bottle Cap Art!</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Amazing isn't it! Creativity and bucket loads of patience..</span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rL6S29cT-o0/SRKXno9B62I/AAAAAAAACCo/5vvBzQ_wDK0/s1600-h/Bottle-Cap-Art.jpg">