This is (and still is) a year of epic proportions. A year filled with atmospheric intensity, martial instability and fiscal unpredictability. This is a year where people from all walks of life confront challenges of different faces hard enough to recognize. Today is 31 December and with little over 5 hours left before we bid adieu to what is considered to be a trying 2014.

Indeed, 2014 is unlike that of its predecessors. 2013 was bad – while 2012, 2011 and so on paled in comparison to what’s going on right now. 2014… well, it’s like dealing with a whole different animal. If you were to paint a picture of it, you would end up with a Jackson Pollock hodgepodge as opposed to a John Register photorealism. The events that unfolded (and still unfolding) have tipped the scales on what is a momentous year.

2014 saw Supertyphoon Hagupit, the MV Sewol capsizing, the Ebola outbreak, the annexation of Crimea, the sudden recession in Japan, the Sony hacking and among others took place. But what’s particularly distinctive is it makes aviation industry front and center with the missing flight 370, the downing of flight 17 in Ukraine airspace, the ‘nut-gate’ and now (currently) another missing flight 8501. 2014 brought us down to our knees.

As we look back, we will try to reflect on what are the things and the values that matters to us. We will try to shed little by little the anxieties that the year brought us and focus on creating a protective mental shield to put a braver attitude to what’s already the new normal of today’s reality. A braver attitude to face 2015.

Someone once said, “Every time history repeats itself, the price of the lesson goes up.” And in line with that thinking, let’s try to keep the lessons we’ve learned this year in parallel to how we see new things as they take shape.

As the next few hours start fleeting by, we will be leaving 2014 behind. It will then become a part of the past that creeps in from behind us from time to time – like a ghost that never rests. And as for the future that’s right in front of us – well... we’ll never know. We’ll just have to keep a close watch on that!

For now, let’s take a moment of reflection for the next few hours offline. Bask in to what remains of 2014 before we hit the restart button for 2015.

Signing off for now – catch up with you in 2015. And before I forget – let me wish you a better, healthier and brighter new year ahead of you!

As a parting gift, I’ll leave you with music’s gift to humanity –


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Photo credit: Google images

I love to travel. It is one of my greatest indulgences to go someplace different and experience something exotic that is far removed from the kind of life I’m accustomed to. Travel gives me pure joy and adrenalin and in the process, helps me become a better person that I am after such an adventure.

On one hand, I like to plan the places I want to travel and the things I want to do. Sort of like a bucket list – if someone might ask. It’s just my way to get a feel of the things I want to accomplish. That way, I won’t be sorry of not doing the things that I should have done while I’m out there.

But on the other, I also like to keep a little bit of room for flexibility and spontaneity. We all know, at some point, plans just don’t often go accordingly. And I have to confess – I have a penchant for welcoming some of these unexpected surprises along the way with an open mind, heart and arms. It allows me to have greater appreciation of how things work especially for those that’s beyond my usual control.

And so, this holiday season is one of the best time to leave extra room for those surprises. When invites come in from every direction from a small gathering here to a fabulous dinner there. A lunchtime beach frolic here to a tub-thumping party there. Seems like the excitement never stops. But then again, so do those last-minute plans that put our anxiety levels on complete overdrive.

Thus, I have thought of some (ahem, personally) tested tips to endure those whimsy holiday travels specifically those short-distance jaunts that turn into an all-nighter. And voila – here goes:

(1) When things go vague, extract it.
Depending on culture, some invites come in the form of word-of-mouth. If you’re lucky, you get yours hand-delivered or snail-mailed or even e-vited. And these provide you with a complete 411 on what to do, how to get there and what to expect. But for some, you get invited through friend of a friend (of a friend of a friend and so on – which again varies culture to culture), and usually contains the vaguest details of the what, the when and the where. So if you can extract as much info as you can from the messenger him/herself – the better.

(2) Have a strategy in mind.
Because, we have a case of a last-minute travel here – make sure to have a compelling reason why you want to take the invitation. As a suggestion, you might want to try having answers to the following questions: What is the invite about? Where and when is it? How much time and notice do I have? How do I get there and how long is the travel? Is there a dress code required? Do I know someone else who’s also going? What do I need to bring? I’m confident there’s more questions you can come up with to prep you – but these are just starters.

(3) Keep a handy travel kit.
The holidays sure do use up a lot of energy and endurance from planning, traveling, socializing and even, ummm eating. So it’s always advised to carry a little go-to kit to keep you perky from all fronts. As an added kick, you can even disguise that chic party clutch to hide those emergency accoutrements from your reliable Advils, breath mints, ginger travel medicine, tissue packet, hand sanitizer to the overnight essentials like pocket toothbrush, toothpaste, deo, dry shampoo, lotion and your fav EDTs. Of course, the basic make up kit is always, I repeat always, on standby, right gals?

Yep, keep these three tips and they will get you going from the time you left for the event until the time you get home. These are surefire way to let you have fun with grace and ease without draining your energy spent at a holiday level low. Go on – take that invite and again, be sure to have fun!

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Photo credits: RSVP Events and CheapHolidayTravels

As the spirit of the holiday season descends upon us, we also try to think back of the good and the bad things that we’ve done to reflect our actions to others.

While we encounter circumstances that, more often than not, are beyond our control – it is sometimes justifiable to say that the actions we’ve done are what’s best needed to be done that very moment. But then again, some situations can also blind our judgment and it is only when certain time has passed that we get to realize what we could have done better.

And so – for this holiday season, I am making an effort to pause and contemplate on the things that I will do before doing them; equally the same way that I will pause on the words that I will say before they come out of my mouth. Making kindness second nature.

Though this holiday make over may not seem as much but I’d rather start small looking at it with a realistic mindset. Something that can sustain on a longer stretch of time as opposed to one that’s short-term.


That is precisely the reason why I am calling this personal goal of mine as the mother of all holiday wish list 2014. So I can remind myself of the importance of making this my focus and to know when it first came into being. As much as it is a wish for myself, but it is also a wish I hope to share to others. My idea of paying it forward – to something more enduring.

And it may not be something you can find inside your holiday stocking. Rest assured, it’s something you can find in your heart and the people that surrounds you.

That said, have a wonderful holiday season. May your hearts be full of kindness and may kindness be in abundance to share around you.

Cheers!

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Photo credit: Huffington Post and A Healthier Michigan

Imagine living a few decades back during your formative years, When everything that surrounds you has that sense of innate goodness and a seemingly uncomplicated life.

The decade is the 1950s - an era where a young generation is constantly exploring what they're made of, armed with an unquestionable moral compass handed over by their parents. The time when family, friends and romantic relationships in its orthodox form is the norm. (And when I say orthodox - I mean the widely accepted definition of what makes a family, family. What makes friends, friends. And what makes romantic partners, romantic partners. You get the drift.) The 50s fashion is at its height - suffice to label it as retro or vintage when you're warped back to those years. The air is filled with typical genre of the decade - swaying your hips to doo-wop beats in the jukebox.