mavreenrose

since we're on the topic of land of many Mormons.. can I ask something that concerns me? I've been accepted both to Texas A&M University and BYU. TAMU has a very solid chemistry program while BYU's charm is that it's in the land of many Mormons... =)I've analyzed the pros and cons and I'm leaning towards TAMU.. should i think twice????

Hi! I got accepted at Texas A&M University. I'm wondering where the nearest temple is and the ward I could attend. Also, I have never travelled outside of my country before.. I'll be attending this Fall term, any advice would be appreciated. Thanks.

congratulations! i hope you enjoy your stay here!

have you guys tried grasshoppers? there's a certain part in the Philippines where they harvest grasshoppers and roast them..

Hi! Can you suggest activities that would teach kids about handling money and also on caring for the environment? Thanks! We have come up with a treasure hunt to let them know that getting money requires work.. then we have an activity wherein they get to plan out their budgets.. and also on saving.. and tithing.. we have film showings for recycling and global warming.. but we sure could use better ideas.. thanks!

Well Tagalog is actually a dialect.. Filipino language.. well, no one is quite definite on this because we are taught Tagalog for our Filipino classes but in terms of usage I think there are more Cebuano speakers than Tagalog speakers.. then of course there's Ilocano,Chavacano, Waray, and many other dialects..

hmm dried mangoes from cebu make great "pasalubong" ( homecoming treats) and the mangoes of guimaras.. well they are the sweetest in the world =) hmm.. but one thing i like being Filipino other than the great food.. is the diversity of dialects.. like in Negros. It's just one island but the western area (Negros Occidental) speaks mostly Hiligaynon, while the eastern area speaks mostly Cebuano. Region 6 or the Western Visayas is a motley of dialects and accents - Aklanon in Aklan, Karay-a in Capiz and Antique, and Hiligaynon in the other provinces. Then of course there are the amazing beaches in Palawan, Cebu and of course Boracay in Aklan. I want to visit the chocolate hills soon in Bohol. But my cousin says that Bohol isn't that pretty these days.

hehe I thought this was about chinese food! =) now this has become a discussion on eating dogs.. but i did eat dog meat once. huhuhu.. My father tricked me. I thought it was caldereta (Filipino beef stew).. turned out it was azucena (pretty much the same recipe except that it's dog meat). And I had several helpings of it too!

I don't there's anything wrong with being attracted to a particular kind of girl. We are all entitled to like who we want to like. If you're thinking of spending the eternities with someone, it is all the more important that you be with someone you like. Besides, your choice of spouse should never be based on a sense of duty. The heart wants what the heart wants.

you know Dr T, I feel grateful each time you comment on my blogs. It makes me feel acknowledged. I'm glad knowing that someone has read my thoughts. I don't see the point of blogging if no one reads them. Also, I am especially grateful for the insights i get from those who comment.

thank you so much for all your insights.. i truly appreciate them.. it seems to me the most logical option for me is the PhD.. i think my head is clearer now

i need advice.. i met my ex bf at the institute before he left for his mission.. we were classmates for a year.. when he went home to his province, that's when we became sweethearts.. after a year or so he left on his mission and i waited for him.. there were difficult times in the relationship but somehow we managed.. anyway when he got back we talked about marriage.. he went with my stake during our stake temple trip and we came up with a plan.. he was to work.. visit me and my family while he continued his studies.. however, just two weeks after he started on his job he quit.. and in the middle of the semester, he said he wanted to shift courses/ quit school.. then came the time when we told my parents about our plans.. things got so bad afterwards.. my parents were against it. my mother was especially adamant and told me she will never give me her blessing if i marry him when he hasn't finished his schooling and doesn't have a job .eventually we had more issues (my need for structure and his constantly changing plans, his lack of practicality on money matters and my need for my parents' approval, his lack of appreciation for the work i do and his lack of effort in the relationship and my lack of faith that things will turn out well..).. so we broke up.. anyway, we started talking again.. and we saw each other recently.. we discussed our issues and the only solution he sees is that i move to his province and work there.. with the global economic crisis i thought that that's a serious mistake.. i have a well paying job - stable and iv had it for 3 years .. and he works at a call center.. he says with my credentials i can find better jobs whereas his opportunities are limited.. i told him it's not just about the job.. it's about my family.. i said it would reflect poorly on him that i have to move just so we can work things out ..partly i feel slighted because he expects me to leave my life in my province just like that.. when i asked him why not he be the one to move because it's easier for him to do so being contractual and all he said he can't just leave his sister (he and his sister reside with extended relatives because his sister attends school in a different province from their hometown).. with that i felt like he thinks my life is of less value that i can just uproot myself that easy... i am confused right now.. that's why i needed to let this all out.. i hope you can help me.. i just got my acceptance to BYU for my PhD applications.. i applied during the time we broke up.. i ddnt know what to do then so i thought graduate school is a good option.. secretly i was hoping we will leave together - to even the playing field, we will both be working,studying, and building a family at the same time.. i told him about my plan to go to BYU provo and i encouraged him to apply as well.. Undergrads from our country usually go to BYU Hawaii so he said if i marry him i can go with him being his wife.. i guess i was being proud but i honestly didn't want to be just an appendage when he applies to BYU.. i also want to pursue further education of my own, be a productive individual..anyway, eventually he didn't submit the paper work needed for his application.. anyway, this brings me to my confusion.. should i move to his province as he suggests? should i pursue my PhD instead? i really don't know what to do.. i know getting married and having a family would give me my greatest happiness but is my relationship worth it? or is the relationship all wrong.. if it is in some aspect, how do i save it? what can i do to resolve these issues? if i should just give it up, i am also afraid that if i pursue graduate school i will end up alone.. here in my province, no one asks me out.. they are put off because i strike them as |intimidating|.. i'm afraid that the PhD will scare them all off... marriage is important to me.. but i also want to marry for the right reasons.. marriage is important to me .. but if it eludes me, i would want to be able to do something with my life, hence the PhD... but i do not wish to pursue it if it would make me ineligible for marriage.. Your thoughts please!!!!!

hi.. i really don't know much about wushu.. i just saw an ad of a girl using a sword (?) and she looked graceful.. and the caption said that she won medals for wushu.. oh yeah it was an ad for a conditioner.. their new campaign featured women who can be feminine despite engaging in a "masculine" sport.. are you from china? mainland china, that is?

thanks.. yeah.. we all have to face the future with faith and optimism =) i wrote the poem remembering how i felt being 24 (and unmarried) at several points of my life... like when i started out i was excited and giddy over the new freedom.. i'm earning my own money.. my family and friends are great.. i have a wonderful calling... and the freedom.. like i could pretty much do anything.. get married, serve a mission, pursue further education, learn a new hobby... and then after some time get to thinking what i want to do with my life.. and having a family seems like the next step.. but then things don't always turn out the way we hope they would.. we all have to wait our turn don't we? hehe...at some point i felt sad.. lonely...impatient even... but later on i guess i learned acceptance.. and had faith... that Heavenly Father is working for my happiness in His own timetable..

hi! i got some inspiration from the forums here.. so i wrote a poem today...i hope it's okay if i post it here.. i just wanted to share it with you...i hope you like it... 24 and unmarried 24 and unmarried hardly cause for concern enjoy life - free, unhindered and wait for your turn 24 and unmarried hardly cause for distress go to places unfettered do more, worry less 24 and unmarried i can do as i please no chores to be burdened save for my dog's fleas 24 and unmarried i can harbor no care opt to be educated or learn to make eclair 24 and unmarried and earning for one keep my gold buried or have fun in the sun 24 and unmarried i have time in my hands living solo to the fullest as i await my wedding band 24 and unmarried such a joy, so they say but suddenly i feel a bit different today 24 and unmarried hardly cause for complain but today i feel worried a tinge of sadness i can't explain 24 and unmarried another friend getting hitched i even thought i'll wed first but then i got ditched 24 and unmarried and now here comes June all my friends are getting married and babies will come soon 24 and unmarried and i'm struggling each day living on my own gets lonelier everyday 24 and unmarried and i'm wondering tonight when i will meet the one who will make things all right 24 and unmarried and today's another day but a surge of inspiration comes to me as i pray 24 and unmarried i have been for some time but i trust in you Lord i trust in Your will and Your time 24 and unmarried great blessings are in store i'll have my day in the temple and i'll be 24 and unmarried no more :)

i received my endowments last year...but i prepared for it for two years.. one sunday, my stake president told my bishop to give me a temple recommend and i was surprised when he did that.. so my bishop called me in for an interview and we talked about it.. but i felt unprepared for it.. i wasn't going on a mission and i was not getting married so i did not understand why... so we talked about how to prepare for it... i took two temple preparation classes..one wasn't enough for me to feel prepared...i've attended the temple several times but only for baptisms.. never for my endowment.. before last year's stake temple trip, my bishop called me again for an interview.. and this time i felt ready... before the endowments though, a temple worker expressed concern why i am getting endowed at such a young age ( i heard the stake presidents were issued a letter that single girls who are not going on missions or are not getting married cannot receive their endowments before age 23)...but that was between me and my bishop... and so i received my endowment.

Thank you so much for your inputs..I do appreciate it. I could use all the help I can get..So you are saying graduate school isn't the way to go? What then is the way to go? After my break up, I assessed where I stand and found that: In my stake and the neighboring stakes, I have no prospects..I have attended several different wards at several different provinces.. I attended the institute and various single adult conferences and though some guys at first express an interest,they get intimidated when they find out that I work as an assistant manager at a prestigious local bank. The Filipino male ego is sensitive and they are culture bound not just to earn a living but to earn more than the woman...In other words, no one will date me given the circumstances.. So I had this "wild" idea.. that maybe I will up my chances by going back to school.. Given that as you say, graduate school isn't the way to go.. what else can I do? It's not for lack of trying that I remain unmarried..

hi! i don't have any kids but i have worked with the primary and i have younger siblings as well... i suggest you read 365 tv-free activities you can do with your child by steve&ruth bennett.. i got an old copy from a used books shop and it had several wonderful suggestions such as 1)adopt a tree - make bark rubbings with crayons and paper in the winter, collect and press leaves in the fall, look for flowers and fruits in the spring, and do leaf rubbings in the summer.. on walks, you can have your kid bring a drink of water for the tree, keep a logbook noting tree's characteristics: height, leaf color, flowering time, fragrance.. you may also show your child how to use a tape measure and note the tree's girth on a chart.. you may also take pictures of your child standing next to the adopted tree once or twice a year 2) ambidextry - you can have your child draw or write with his hand that he does not favor.. 3)body trace - have your child lie face-up on a large sheet of paper (unprinted newstock is goo) with a crayon or marker. cut out the image and glue it onto a large sheet of posterboard.. set your kid loos with crayons, markers, colored paper, tape, paint and whatever decorating matreials you have on hand.. suggest drawing facial features or clothes.. 4) carrot top - when you make a salad don't throw out the stubby ends of the carrot - the part with the greens.. save those stubs and have ur child place them in a saucer that contain just a little water. keep the saucers near a window and keep the water level consistent and mark the height of the greens on the first day..before long, your child will note a measurable increase in height .. by beginning a new carrot top each day, seven plants will yield seven different heights at the end of the week.. you will need to use carrots that have not had the greens removed initially..you must buy them fresh by the bunch and not in bags.. 5)celery leaves - find a robust leafy stalk of a celery. give the stalk two legs by cutting a 4-inch slit starting at the base of the stalk. fill a smal galss with water. have ur child add several drops of blue food coloring. fill another galss and ad several drops of red food coloring. place one of the stalks legs in the blue and the other in the red. the next am your kids will be amazed to find that half of the leaves are streaked with blue while the rest show red. explain that the food coloring traveled up little tubes in the celery stalk and that the tubes caryy water up from the roots for the plant when it's in the gorund.. you can cut the stalk crosswise for your child to see how the color got to the leaves.. hope these suggestions work!:)

Glad I could help, Funky Town.. And yep, this whole marriage thing is complicated.. Are you sure you want to be listening to my advice? Hehe... After reading so many dating guides and self-help books, I can only conclude one thing : There's a lot of market share for these books but they aren't any help at all... I'd rather have your fancy dress sense.. But hey, you better be careful with that silk shirt.. Make sure your bellybutton is clean!!!

Where are all the single girls? We're all over the world.. probably pursuing other interests while waiting for Prince Charming... I'm 24 and single.. Haha.. Nothing new there..

hoooo... I'm sorry, did I break it to you that bad? Tsk Tsk Tsk.... Random proposals to people on the internet isn't the way to go..That's already outdated..Haven't you heard? The best way to have someone marry you is to ambush them on the streets, engagement ring on hand and go.. "Marriage or life?" Then, if she agrees, you give her your hotdogs with Twinkie buns spiel.. that may work.. But offer to do the dishes if she agrees to cook..Hehehe.

Hahahaha Is that a marriage proposal? And I thought you said I shouldn't settle?? Hehehehe It's like being asked to choose between the devil and the deep blue sea.. (You may choose whether you're the devil or the deep blue sea, but personally I prefer the deep blue sea.. At least you're deep.. Hehehe) You're funny Funky Town but I'd be way funnier if I agree to marry you =p or worse CRAZY!!!! hahahha

Hahaha.. I hardly think it's the perfect plan.. Besides you can't just go around asking people to marry you... Hahaha... That would be crude and it would be creepy to have someone actually agree to marry you! You would have to consider his sanity.. I read something from TIME and the article suggested that people ought to be "choosy" for the "improvement of the species". In other words, a "strong" man and a 'strong woman' would rear stronger children.. that's why people should be "picky"... do i make sense at all? i am not quite articulate in trying to rephrase what the article suggested.

thanks for the affirmation. i am actually adapting a new outlook - that is never to settle.. and never to shortchange myself from the kind of relationship that is worth pursuing ( my institute teacher would always remind us that we never marry just because it is a commandment. we ought to marry because there is love) of course, i am well aware that one can never find a perfect relationship.. but i am optimistic, because a prophet (though I don't remember which one..) said - that a righteous man and a righteous woman can make a relationship work if both are willing to pay the price. what is tricky though.. is finding the "right" person.. so in the meanwhile, i will pursue other interests... like my education, for example... but i'm hoping that along the way, i meet someone who would be congenial.. and who knows.. maybe, just maybe.. i won't be single for long...

prioritize other interests? i think that's hardly the case.. some of us are forced to pursue other interests because marriage is elusive.. case in point: i met my ex-bf during college.. he left for his mission and i waited for him.. there was talk of marriage.. when he returned, we came up with a plan - we were to save and he was to build a relationship with my family. i quit my masters so i can focus more on the plan, because i prioritized marriage.. however, things didn't go so well..he didn't stick to the plan..he rarely visited me..i was the one looking for means so we will see each other..he changes his course of action on a whim and it seems he never gives any thought as to how it would affect me, affect us..he quit school..he didn't exert much effort in finding work..bottomline is, i felt like i was doing all the work.. i was devastated.. so what do i do? i break up with him..better get a heartbreak this early than spend eternity with someone who gave me no thought..AND then i go back to my masters.. i am applying for graduate school.. but something is holding me back.. maybe the fear that i would "intimidate" the guys i meet and i end up alone.. i hear feedback from friends and cousins.. they say i'm a spinster in the making with my pursuits.. but is it this hard to meet someone? should i pretend i'm dumb and that i don't have any opinions? should i shortchange myself from improving myself? will i eventually place myself "out of the race" too? or do i settle instead? but i hold my case about pursuing interests.. IT IS NEVER BECAUSE MARRIAGE IS IN THE BOTTOM OF OUR LIST.. MARRIAGE IS ACTUALLY ON TOP OF OUR LIST but when a girl remains unmarried, what is there left to do?