Re-reading my feel-good books

It's been a stressful two weeks, and I've got a lot on my plate.. So what do I do to keep my stress level at a less-than-crazy-but-not-much rate? I read.

Reading, for me, is not just a pasttime, nor a hobby. It's a necessity. I like reading because it takes me away, away from this stress. And while I read pretty much anything, whenever I need a distraction I have several go-to books I always re-read.

These are the books I never get tired of repeating, and most of these I've read more than 5 times. The ones on top of my list are Harry Potter (of course this tops the list, I've been a fan ever since I read Sorcerer's stone when I was in Grade 5), Percy Jackson (I love Greek mythology and I fell for the books as soon as I read them), Heroes of Olympus (because I can never get enough of Percy and Annabeth), The Hunger Games (not a fave, but when I'm way too stressed I like to read about the tributes killing each other), Pride and Prejudice (my all-time big-time favorite book ever), Julie James' books (no idea, but I love them).. And the list goes on. I have probably a dozen authors and series on my feel-good list.

But anyway, this time I've re-read Rick Riordan's books. I've finished the 5 books of Percy Jackson and now I'm on the second book of Heroes of Olympus. 

Sometimes I imagine I'm a demigod (because I'm awesome that way). I'd like to think that I am a daughter of Athena, my favorite Greek goddess. Heh.

Multitasking gone horribly wrong

I am a multitasker. Being a bit ADHD (self-diagnosed, mind you), I have the inability to focus on one single task. I get started on one thing, then end up getting sidetracked by another. Short attention span at its finest. My solution? I do multiple things at the same time. 

This morning, however, my multitasking skills failed me.

As I mentioned before, our helper left our employ. Plus, my Mom went to Manila to be with my Uncle J who underwent angioplasty (it was successful, btw). So it's just me and my Dad. Which means most of the housework falls on my capable (is it, though?) hands.

This morning Dad asked me to give our dogs a bath. I bathe my dogs (I have 5) once a week, but I've been neglecting them since our helper left because I've been a) busy, b) tired, c) both.

I woke up at 7, but I went back to bed. I have the luxury of sleeping in until 9 or so, because I'm usually up till 2 or 3 in the morning finishing the odd jobs I've got going online (I'm making cookbooks now). So I got up around 10, procrastinated a bit, and got started on the dogs.

I started with Rusty. After I bathed and dried him, I went to get the pugs. Then I decided I better clean their play pen first, so that it'll be clean when I put them back in after their bath. By the time I finished cleaning it was already 11:15. I wasn't in a rush, though, because Dad saw how busy I was and suggested that we get takeout instead, so I don't have to cook lunch. Then, I gave Bruno a bath.

Around 11:45, Dad left to get our order, and I realized that we don't have rice yet. So I took out last night's leftover rice and heated it over the stove. While I have that going, I took Basha and gave her a bath. And totally forgot about the rice I was heating.

Basha was giving me a hard time, so I keep talking to her (yes, I talk to my dogs) to distract her. Until I got a whiff of something burning, which made me rush to the kitchen to turn off the stove.

But I was too late. 

We had to endure eating rice that smelled like charred wood. Dad was laughing the whole time.

20+ years of cooking and multitasking, and this is the first time this happened to me. Lesson learned, though. Never give a dog a bath while on kitchen duty. 😅

Me-time badly needed!

I need some time off, seriously. 

In between doing housework, going to the shop, and finishing up the work I have on the side, I need to make some time for myself. I like being busy, it keeps me from thinking way too much about what's weighing me down these days, but this is seriously killing me.

I have a constant headache, and don't even get me started on my back. What I need is a nice, long massage but I don't even have time for that.

Adding to the stress is my Mom leaving for Manila tomorrow, so it's just going to be me and my Dad for a few days.. And that means I get to do all the housework — cleaning, cooking, washing, feeding the dogs.. At least he's the one who brings the dogs up to our rooftop to let them do their "thing".

Not that my Mom is going for fun. My Uncle J had another attack, I think. Or maybe they saw something on his physical, I'm not clear on the details. All I know is something is wrong with his heart, and they (my uncle and my cousins) are flying to Manila from Bacolod and heading straight to Philippine Heart Center. My Mom is going to meet them at the airport.

My Uncle J is a fighter. He had a coronary bypass a few years back, and he emerged from that first attack stronger than ever. I'm praying that he's going to fight this off, too.

And here I am complaining about being tired when others have it worse than me. But I think I earned the right to be selfish for a bit. Just this time. 

It's almost 2 AM now. I just finished some extra work I've been doing (a little sideline to earn some extra moolah) and instead of ranting about how tired I am, maybe I should've just went straight to bed, huh?

Zzzzzz

A year later..

Wow, I can't believe it's been a year since my last post (well, maybe I can). I've just been too lazy to do so. And it's not like I have anything to post about. Life has been fairly routine to date. I get up, I do chores, I go to work. My days are an endless cycle of boring.

I'll try to post more, though. The key word being try. 

It's just, I've been busy lately. Our helper left our employ after 7 years (I think) with us and took a caregiving job in the big city (meaning Manila, LOL). We haven't found a replacement yet, but we get by. I took on most of the house chores, though. I cook (not everyday), clean, wash dishes, iron. I give the dogs a bath once a week. I drew the line with laundry, though. I just gathered up all the dirty laundry and brought them all to the laundromat. 

So.. Looking back, a lot has happened over the past year. I mean a lot. But I'll just mention the highlights.

I dragged the Boyfriend with me and watched Beauty and the Beast, which makes that my fourth musical (after Cats, Phantom of the Opera, and Wicked) I'll be watching Les Mis this March (can't wait!) with a very reluctant companion (the Boyfriend, again). 

The family got bigger with new dog additions. Pugs Bruno and Basha joined the family. We had another one, Bruha but she died of infectious canine hepatitis after being with us for several months. 

Basha and Bruno celebrated their first Christmas

Our shop turned one! The Nail Express celebrated its first year last November.

I got two new goddaughters, which means more kids to give gifts to during Christmas. LOL Ally is the daughter of my cousin, and Riley is the Boyfriend's niece. Such adorable cuties!

My friend got married last December. (Which made me think about how old we're getting. Seems like yesterday when it was all debuts and stuff, now it's all weddings and christenings.)

Hmmm. What else, what else? I know there's more but I seem to be drawing a blank. But anyway, I'll just stop here for the moment. Fingers crossed that I'll be blogging more and more again!