Thursday, December 31, 2015

Goodbye 2015, Hello 2016

I almost couldn’t believe that today is the last day of 2015. Before the year ends and I bid goodbye to the year of the sheep, let me recall this year’s highlights and what made it memorable for me.



First off, the Papal Visit happened in January from the 15th to the 19th. As a Catholic country this is the time where Filipinos experienced a renewal of faith when Pope Francis came. The Pope came to the Philippines during the first leg of his Asian trip and brought about the message of “Mercy and Compassion.” Pope Francis was the second Pope after Pope John Paul III to have visited the country.


I am still addicted to online shopping so my sister and I got ourselves mason jar cozies. I will never forget how cute this cookie monster cozy was and the hassle of buying a made to order item. It took a month before I got it but I swear to God I will not order from that seller again. My cozy will turn 1 year on the 25th of January. 


Pets come and go. Our house cat in Antipolo that I named Moonie passed away on February 13th. I don’t know how long he lived but he definitely died of old age. The last time I saw him alive was April of last year before I left for Cambodia to spend my 34th birthday.


I’ve always been a health buff but no matter how careful I am I had some minor health issues in March. I was diagnosed with G.E.R.D and was on medication for two weeks. I had my second endoscopy since my gallbladder operation in July of last year because of some bacteria that thrived in my stomach and was on medication for a month. 


I want a birthday present for myself and I couldn’t think of anything so I had my second piercing and I loved it. I thought it’s cute. My piercing is eight months old and will turn one year on April 12, 2016.


How can I forget my 36th birthday getaway in Hongkong (April 25-27)? It was my first time in HK though I never get the chance to visit Disneyland, I was happy to see the largest Buddha, the Tian Tian Buddha at Ngong Ping, Lantau Island.


It was a sigh of relief when I finally quit my job in July. I got my final pay in August (yay!).


Pets need TLC too. On August 2nd my sister and I brought our 10-year-old German Shepherd to the vet due to his infected hygroma and was on medication for 2 weeks. 


On August 21, Typhoon Ineng hit Northern Luzon big time. Our town was enveloped in darkness for 3 days.

I enrolled in a driving school in September, the rush course lasted only for 2 days. Whew.


Typhoon Lando badly damaged Northern Luzon last October 18. That was the worst typhoon ever. We had no electricity for 4 days. 


Moving into a new house this year in October was the best thing that happened to our family this year. God is good and I couldn’t ask for more.


Just three days after moving into our new house we took Yumi, our 4-year-old Lhasa Apso to the vet because my sister and I noticed that she’s losing weight and starting to smell weird. According to the vet that Yumi's blood test showed that she was positive for some blood parasite. She was bitten by an infected tick so she was on lots of vitamins and antibiotics for 2 months because she was still positive on the 2nd month. Poor little dog, thank God she’s all well now.


Our senior dog Brandon was rushed to the vet again and was confined for three days from November 16-19 due to dehydration. We had Brandon’s CBC checked and was told that his kidney and liver are no longer in good condition because of his age. He was able to recover after three weeks.


I'm a little bit of a gadget freak and an Apple fan. I couldn’t live without my iPhone or laptop so I got myself a MacBook Air 11 as a Christmas present. Happiness overload.


I was happy for a while but that happiness turned to grief when Brandon, our most loved guard dog passed away 2 days after Christmas. His kidney and liver finally gave up. He will be missed. 


I guess life is all about balance. Good and bad things happen for a reason, it is not just mere coincidence. Everything that happened this year gave me a lot of things to ponder. On that note, let me share a quote to wrap up 2015 for me:


“As the year comes to an end, don’t look back on yesterday’s disappointments. Look ahead to God’s promises yet to unfold.” ~ Buky Gelabi ~


Goodbye to the year of the sheep. This is going to be my year so let me welcome the year of the Monkey with a bang. Hello 2016, Let's rock this.












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