Saturday, January 05, 2008

The Year 2008

The old year is out and the New Year is in. This signals the end of the Christmas season. This season always stresses me out. Thanksgiving Day through the Christmas holidays were hectic times for me. I had a Thanksgiving dinner party for family members and relatives (who I hardly see during the year); an unplanned party a few days before Christmas day; and Christmas day itself had me all worked up. Preparing before the event gets me all jittery.


However, with all the food that was laden on the table, I never gained an ounce from it. I think I even lost some, as my pants were a bit looser. That was something I liked about it. But now that it is all over, I'm beginning to have more appetite and eat more. Ugh!


Now, before plunging ahead on the coming New Year, I should look back and make a recollection of the old one. There was the stormy weather; the scary wildfires; the sizzling heat that we had to contend with; the skyrocketing price of fuel (gasoline) that bored a hole in our pockets; the dreaded days; and the gloomy days when things went bad.


There were good days. We were fortunate to have been spared by the wildfires; the kids are fine...doing well; and the geek and I are solid as ever. We laughed a lot and made fun of ourselves more. LOL


It was not a bad year after all. There were no serious problems that we have encountered, unlike others. There were those whose loved ones have passed on; loved ones lost and still missing; properties burned in the wildfires; or lost in other catasthrophe. We were still fortunate, we were intact.

What do I have in store for the coming year? That is yet to be seen. I do not make any more resolutions as I'm very sure I would break some of them, if not all. I've been promising myself, and my husband, that I'd be walking more to lose the extra pounds, but it never happened; I had promised myself to do more oil paintings, but have done 5 only for the entire year (how pathetic?); I am, however, doing pencil sketches to keep my hands busy.


I got here, to the year 2008. Now what? I will see as the days roll by. Hopefully, it will be a promising one--a bright one; hopefully, I will be out of the red (I'm praying for a miracle); and hopefully, I'll still be strong and healthy, and so with the rest of my family.

31 comments:

Pepe said...

That's true Mari, kailangan mong gumamit ng special printers and papers to really get a good result, na-experience ko na yan many times na mainis dahil hindi ako satisfied dun sa print na lumabas.... Mas-prefered ko pa rin ang paints and brush kesa dito.... Kaya lang, this is a good way na rin to practice my colour balancing and besides, wala pa rin naman akong time na magpinta sa canvas ngayon.... =D

Oi, na-noticed mo rin pala yun, tama ka dyan, 2007 was really a tough year tapos akala ko sa akin lang pero madami sa mga friends ko ang nagsalita rin about their observations.... Pero ngayong year parang iba na ang feeling, nakaka-relax ako kahit medyo kapos dahil sa aftershock ng 2007 at may mga hiram pang pera sa brother ko pero parang iba ang pakiramdam ko ngayon parang more relaxed ba.... =D

Photo Cache said...

Happy 2008. We just started the year up here in NorCal with strong storm (3 of them). The second one was the strongest, wreaking the most havoc and carrying very strong winds. Hope you are safe adn dry down south.

Anonymous said...

hi mari. just visiting :)

happy new year!

Ann said...

Hello Mari! Do you have kids? I haven't seen any pix here yet.



"There were good days. We were fortunate to have been spared by the wildfires; the kids are fine...doing well; and the geek and I are solid as ever. "

Mari said...

pepe,
Oo nga, ang resulta ng printing ay iba kaysa oil painting. Kaya lang ang oil painting ay marami pang preparation bago ka makapag-umpisa. The end result, however, is a lot better, more lasting.

Yeah, it was a tough year. Pero, mabuti pa rin ang kalagayan namin kumpara sa iba.

Thanks for the visit.

Mari said...

photo cache,
Yup, that's the welcoming committee of the year...the storm. We have it here. We had it last night, pounding on us. It was not, however, as strong as up there.

Happy New Year to you.

Mari said...

ladyracer,
Happy New Year to you, too.

Thanks for the visit.

Mari said...

ann,
Yes, I have kids. I have a drawing of them here.

Happy New Year!

Nance said...

lucky for you, dudette, u didn't gained an oz. ... i, on the other hand, gained 4 lbs! ... i added a mile on my daily walk.

Remember this?
Seasons may come & go
Seems to go fast without much ado
There's one thing though i can't forgo
That is, to express my everlasting love for you
by the geek

i was cleaning house today, and i found the above. u and the geek r meant for each other!

Anonymous said...

5 paintings? that's wow!

i love the drawing you made. never occured to me to see the new year that way. usually, an old man and a baby diba. galing!

Nini said...

2008, another year of new challenges and another year of gifts to be thankful for.

and above all, we're so lucky to be alive and blogging, di ba.

nini

Mari said...

nance,
I couldn't eat much when I'm stressed...so no pounds gained.

That poem's by the geek? he he he...how sweet.

We both can't stand pretty people, so we stick with each other. LOL

Thanks for dropping by.

Mari said...

lady cess,
You know, pro artists can make one painting a day? Yup!

For me, that's another way of looking at the New Year.

Happy New Year to you and your family!

Mari said...

nini,
And another year to work on our paintings...and poetry. LOL

Thanks for the visit.

Unknown said...

happy new year.. baliktad ka pala, pag holidays nagloloose ng weight.. hehehe...

Ngayon ko lang rin nalaman na may kids na po pala kayo... :)

have a nice 2008 po... GOd bless you always and your family..

Pepe said...

Goodie wednesday Mari....! Busy na ba sa pagpi-painting....? I'm glad na na-trigger ang gana mong magpinta ulit he-he....! Mahirap yan ha, i know that kasi pagtinatamad din akong magpinta ay talagang napakahirap i-convince ang sarili ko na humawak ng brush at magpinta ulit unless na meron na namang bagay na mag-trigger sa akin, ganyan tayo ka-moody'ng mga artists di ba....? =D

Mari said...

razzy,
Sa stress sa paghahanda hindi ako makakain masyado kaya ganoon.

Happy New Year and may this year be the best for you.

Mari said...

pepe,
Tama ang sinabi mo...kaya pag ako ay nakapag-painting ngayon, malaki ang pasalamat ko sa iyo.

Anonymous said...

Yay!!HAPPY NEW YEAR! I wish you all the best... :)

Mari said...

tina,
Thanks. I wish you the best as well.

Pepe said...

Meron yata Mari, hey you've given me an idea there ha-ha....! Nakita ko yan sa mga photo developing stores, they can even print the family photos and thing into a huge canvas good for the living rooms....! I should try that for my arts one day....! =D

Dennis Villegas said...

Nice recap of what 2007 was like :) I wish you and your family the best of 2008, and the years to come!

dodong flores 도동 플로오리스 said...

A prosperous years ahead of us, Mari... :)

Mari said...

pepe,
All right! Great idea, isn't it?


Dennis,
I wish you the best of 2008 as well.

Thanks for your visit.


dodong,
Hopefully it will be a prosperous one for all of us.

Thanks for dropping by.

GingGoy said...

more blogging cheers for the new year

Vk-mahalkaayo said...

hello mari,

i am touch with your Post......

gain a kilo?...kilos, for 2 weeks i gain 2 kls too...its not too bad, i need kls. for this time.

serious problems, world-family....i pray that if possible will not come again or not happen again.

Resolutions?...promising for any or even one, i would not say too, ....

Trying to be Active and Healthy, these what I am Praying for.

God Helps me.........

have a wonderful weekend to you n family...........regards

Vk-mahalkaayo said...

I wish you, All the Best for the new year, 2008....

Unknown said...

Very nice drawing Mari,t reminded me of my childhood...and im being emo mode right now.

what a year huh?but of course,we are grateful that we had got them over,and now we are all facing new challenges this year.that should be "life"..challenges,right?

re:about Nona`s blog..i feel desperate nga,kasi after mag down ang akoni,my blog is up pero im having troubles with teh web host server pa rin,thats why my sub domains are down...really bad...made me avoid my akoni blog...

happy weekend Mari!

and how come you didnt gain an ounce?i gained more pounds,now trying to work on it. :) goodluck to us!

ghee

Carlota said...

I love this drawing ... my mind already thinking to make a header for blog. hehehe.

yeah- agree with you 2007 been hard hopefully 2008 will be great. for me so far so good.

i'm suppose to do more cleaning but i'm here got stuck! hehehe. take care and have a wonderful weekend.

Mari said...

ghee,
Oh, don't be sad. Our childhood is full of good memories, but we can't go back home anymore.

Yes, new challenges for this year, 2008. Well, Nona, is back in her old blog. Buti na lang marami siyang ebahay. LOL

When I'm stressed it's hard for me to eat, that's why I didn't gain an ounce. That's the plus of it.

Thanks for your nice comment, I sure appreciate that.

Muah!

Mari said...

carlota,
That oil painting was from a small black and white photo of my (parents) house. It was full of good memories for me.

Yeah, let's hope for the best this year...2008.

I'm still doing cleaning, discarding, shredding papers and organizing in my studio/room.

Thanks for your comment...and have a great weekend.

;-D