My boyfriend playfully (and I use the term loosely) scolds me whenever I look back at grievances other people have done to me, saying I should stop living in the past and memories shouldn't hurt me anymore. But I can't help it if certain things affected me so much that I can still remember - vividly - the feelings I felt when I first felt them, months (and years, even) after. They're not all bad memories, anyway. There are a lot of good memories too, but I guess pain leaves deeper marks than happiness.

Whew, what an emo introduction. Whatever. I'm getting cheese fries. 

I don't know, but I guess now is a good time as any to remember my favorite TV show in the world.

I'll make this short and sweet since I've written about How I Met Your Mother a LOT of times already (I even have watercolor paintings inspired by the show, of which this one is my favorite), but I just wanted to highlight here my favorites.


The Yellow Umbrella

"The great moments of your life won't necessarily be the things you do. They'll also be the things that happen to you. Now I'm not saying you can't take action to affect the outcome of your life. You have to take action. And you will! But never forget that on any day, you could step out the front door and your whole life could change forever. You see, the Universe has a plan kids, and that plan is always in motion. A butterfly flaps its wings and it starts to rain. It's a scary thought, but it's also kind of wonderful. All these little parts of the machine constantly working... Making sure that you end up exactly where you're supposed to be, exactly when you're supposed to be there. The right place, at the right time."

Like it blows my mind how I landed my previous job AND my current job, as well as my missed connections with Miah that could've made us meet years ago. Should've, could've, would've, but things happened the way they're supposed to happen. Amazing.

How I felt about Last Forever
My reaction post about the controversial finale

#LegenWaitForItDaryKrissyParty
My 28th birthday How I Met Your Mother-inspired party

The stuff legendary parties are made of
How I made my 28th birthday How I Met Your Mother-inspired party happen

28 for 28th
Some of my favorite quotes from the show

Thank you, Ted Mosby, Marshall Eriksen, Robin Scherbatsky, Barney Stinson, Lily Aldrin, and Tracy McConnell. Thank you, MacLaren's. You don't know the impact of your show to my life but I am so grateful to you for bringing these characters to life. Thank you, Ed, for introducing this show to me. I am grateful you're my friend, and I'm grateful I listened to you when you told me that I MUST watch this show.

From this post:

"An affirmation of hopefulness and optimism... A valentine to things like friendship and love." No sweeter words from the creators could have been spoken. Thank you, Carter and Craig.

This week left me feeling drained and exhausted, and I seriously couldn't wait for the weekend. Not to rest, though, but to be in the company of books. ♥

The 37th Manila International Book Fair started last Thursday but because of work my boyfriend Miah and I only got to go yesterday.

As expected, SMX Convention Center was PACKED! I didn't even get to take photos because I was too preoccupied balancing my stack of books and making sure I don't bump into anyone. It was a total workout!

I heard most of my #romanceclass classmates' books got sold out. CONGRATULATIONS! I'm making it my goal to join next year. ♥

I set a budget for myself but OF COURSE I was bound to go over the limit. Here is my haul:

Halina Filipina was a gift from Miah. ♥ 

We weren't able to drop by the Fully Booked booth anymore because the lines were too long and we were starving. We planned to go back after eating but we dropped by the Fully Booked store in SM Mall of Asia instead. Pro-tip: All books were also discounted by 20% there and we didn't have to wait in a long queue!

I missed out on getting the other books on my list like the Harry Potter box set, the Sandman slipcase set, and Francesc Miralles' Love in Lowercase because of budget constraints, while I didn't see the graphic novel version of Paulo Coelho's The Alchemist, Elizabeth Gilbert's Eat Pray Love Made Me Do It, and Tyler Knott Gregson's Chasers of the Light. That's okay, there's always a next time. After all, my existing to-read pile (that's already taller than me as it is) and these new additions should tide me over until the next lifetime.

Our MIBF date inspired me so much that I made sure to dedicate a page on my journal for it.

I am so happy with my MIBF2016 haul and I can't wait to read them all!

Next year I'm taking a leave from work so I can go on the first day. 

I've been tracking the #MIBF2016 hashtag on Instagram because I love looking at other people's book hauls. ♥ Did you get to go also? What books did you get? I would love to know!

Remember when I wrote two short stories last year that were published as part of two separate ebook anthologies? Remember when I said I would expound on them and write the continuation to turn them into novellas? And as for the case of A Sky of Wishes, write more stories in the same universe? Remember when I even showed you the cover of the print edition of Once Upon a Sticky Note? I had such high ambitions, envisioning pages with illustrations and hand-written notes.

Such wishful thinking. Such lofty dreams.

The Manila International Book Fair 2016 officially started today and it's taking all of me to not up and leave everything so I could go to SMX Convention Center and hoard books that I don't really need right now because I'm basically drowning in a to-read pile that's taller than me.

I'm actually feeling a bit downtrodden today because I could have had the chance to sell my books at the Indie Publishers booth together with my #romanceclass and #StrangeLit classmates, but I wasn't able to grab it due to the fact I still haven't been able to finish polishing and creating the artworks I wanted to create for them.

I am so jealous of them right now. They're all busy women with careers and/ or families to take care of and have so much going on with their lives yet they were able to do it, and I didn't. What's my excuse?

I put it off in my quest for perfection that I ended up with nothing. 

That's not to say I'm not happy for my peers' successes, of course. I am so glad and grateful that local authors are being given this opportunity thanks to Mina Esguerra who paved the way for romance writers and readers to find one another and introduced us to the world of indie publishing. I love being part of this community!

Sigh.

If I could make a wish on a star, I would wish for courage. 

I think I'll be better tomorrow. Or on Friday. Or this weekend, when I'm finally there smelling all the books and grabbing the copies I want to get. But let me wallow in disappointment tonight.

All that said, I hope you can support indie and visit the Indie Publishers booth!

Today, my boyfriend and I celebrated our 15th month as a couple. ♥

Coincidentally, today was declared a regular non-working holiday in observance of Eid'l Adha so we were able to go out. Because we were starting to get sick of our usual date haunts and were craving for something new, we went all the way to Banawe in Quezon City for Chef Robert.

And we were rewarded.

We have been planning to go for a while now but it was only that we got the chance. I hope you're not hungry when you read this post because I'll surely whet your appetite, heh.

There was so much food that we feel even three people can take part in that feast! 

Cream of Pumpkin Soup Classic rich pumpkin soup with bacon bits We liked this because it was rich and creamy.

Korean Beef Stew Tempting beef stewed to perfection I found this a tad too sweet, but Miah liked it. The beef is so tender it melts in your mouth.

Crispy Kare-Kare Crispy lechon kawali served with Kare-kare sauce (with a side of bagoong) This might have ruined all other Kare-Kare for me, including my Mother's cooking. I now want all my Kare-Kare to be served with crispy lechon kawali. This was perfect.

Chap Chae Stir-fried Korean glass noodles with vegetables and chicken strips Miah's Mom didn't like it that much because she felt it lacked flavor (we couldn't finish everything so we took the rest home), but I actually liked this and wanted to eat more if only I wasn't so full already.

Chocnut Mousse Cake This is a new dessert. I liked that it's not too sweet. The Chocnut and Choco Knots give it a local and welcome flair. I liked this and will order this again when I go back.

Coffee Jelly Coffee in jelly with nata de coco, cream, and a scoop of vanilla ice I liked this because unlike other coffee jellies I've tried, this one didn't give me palpitations. It was also the first time I tried a Coffee Jelly dessert with nata de coco. A+++

Commendable service by the staff also. We really enjoyed our monthsary lunch! We hope Chef Robert opens another branch nearer our place of work. Nevertheless, never mind that it's out of way, we'll definitely be back.

For those who are curious and would like to try this restaurant, Chef Robert is located in 847 Banawe St., St. Peter, Quezon City. You may check their menu here.

Now as you may have noticed on my posts if you're a regular visitor of this blog, Miah and I have a lot of hobbies. One thing I like about our relationship is that we include the other one in these hobbies. For example, he opened the world of toy-collecting and Tamiya, among others, to me, while I shared crystal-growing and resin- jewelry making with him as well. I've been wanting to teach him love letter-writing also but he's still resisting, ugh. HAHA.

Today, I gave him a kaleidoscope making kit. ^_^


We were supposed to make one from scratch but I wasn't sure where to get pre-cut mirrors, thus the kit.


We assembled it earlier and... TA DA!


There were a lot of trinkets included in the kit divided by theme like colorful beads, transparent beads for snowflake patterns, color filters, and glow-in-the-dark stars. The colorful beads are my favorite and I'll probably scavenge more items to put inside!

Today's experiment: @miahthepwnr and I made a kaleidoscope! ✨✨✨ #happythankyoumorecheese

A video posted by Kristel Ann Cruz (@krissyfied) on Sep 12, 2016 at 3:47am PDT

Dear Miah,
Looking forward to more discoveries with you. I love you. ♥ Do you have any recommended restaurants for our 16th monthsary? (^_^)

Whew. All those car talk on this blog, my Facebook, and my Instagram made me want to reach in to my drafts and finish a lipstick review, hence this post.

The '90s have made a comeback, as trends are wont to do. Makeup brands left and right have released numerous shades of brown and of course Maybelline has its own interpretation. Following the success of the first batch of Maybelline Creamy Mattes (I have Touch of Spice, Vibrant Violet, and Ravishing Rose in my stash), Maybelline brought their Creamy Matte Browns to the Philippine shores, and I was waiting on the wings ready to lap them all up.

Here are my swatches of and clear notes on the four most popular shades in this collection: Burgundy Blush, Clay Crush, Nude Nuance, and Touch of Spice. 

Out of all Maybelline products I have tried (and I have tried a lot!), the Creamy Matte lipsticks are my favorite because they're extremely pigmented even with just one swipe, they stay on for hours, and they don't leave my lips feeling dry. I love them! A word of caution, though: they have the US formula so they melt easily. Best to leave them in a cool place or "depot" and put them in a lipstick palette instead.

So. Photos! I love how my glasses let me get away with not filling in my brows most days, heh. 

BURGUNDY BLUSH

Burgundy Blush is a dark burgundy red lipstick. It's one of my current favorite lipsticks even though it leaves my lips dry sometimes. It's such a powerful #girlboss lipstick that is fun to wear from day meetings to night events.



Clay Crush is a such a pretty, subtle, unique color. My camera couldn't quite capture the correct color, but it's a peachy brown with a hint of terracotta. It reminds me of clay planters, actually.



Nude Nuance is a true brown. It's such a beautiful color also. I'm predicting it has now found a permanent spot in working yuppies everywhere because it's a safe yet far from boring color that's perfect for those in more conservative offices. Best paired with smokey brown eyes for a fall FOTD.



I already reviewed Touch of Spice a few months back so I'm just going to repeat here what I said: Instapretty with a swipe! Everyone should have a tube (and a backup) of Touch of Spice in their pouches.

As you were able to see, brown is NOT boring! Here's a side-by-side comparison of all four shades. You'd think we're just talking about brown lipsticks (that truth be told, connotes blah all over it) but look at this and marvel at the spectrum of colors men can create.


Which one is your favorite? Let me know because I sure as hell can't decide which one is mine, heh.

Aaand there you have it! The Maybelline Creamy Mattes are now available in all Maybelline counters nationwide and in BeautyMNL for only P299 each. If you're lucky, you might even snag them on sale!

I hope you enjoyed this quick review. I still have a ton of beauty products to comment on so thank you, thank you for sticking around. ♥

Wouldn't it be nice to go back to simpler times? Back when the only thing we had to worry about were escaping nap-times and which notebooks to pair with which subjects. Ah grade school days, I miss you and your carefree sensibilities.

One thing that was very popular when I was in grade school-turning-high school was racing Tamiya mini 4wd models. I remember my Dad even made a huge race track for my brother. I personally never got into it, though. I was a girly girl and I still am now and my interests then up to now lie primarily on books, clothes, dolls, and stationery, not cars. Definitely never cars.

But what do you know, my boyfriend who used to race decided to take on the hobby again, and he wanted to reel me in as well. He even got me my own car!

Can you guess which one is mine? (ღ˘⌣˘ღ) I have the Aero Avante Clear Pink Special and it is beautiful. ♥ Note that aside from helping me put double-sided tape, I was the one who assembled it!

And because I'm me, I prettified it further with washi tape.


We've been going to Waltermart Makati to watch other racers and tonight, he entered me in the competition. Eep!

I resisted because I literally don't know anything about this hobby aside from the things he already told me that I tried hard to absorb. I don't even know what the parts are called! But we were already there and he was looking at me like that so might as well throw caution to the wind and zoom zoom.

And what do you know. I won my first race!


And then, I won again!

@krissyfied wins the first heat in her tournament bracket! #Tamiya #mini4wd ##AeroAvante #Pink special

A video posted by @miahthepwnr on Sep 10, 2016 at 8:27am PDT

I even won the quarter finals!

After previously winning her 2nd heat tournament bracket, @krissyfied races in the quarter finals. Check out that stability! #Tamiya #mini4wd #stockrace #waltermart

A video posted by @miahthepwnr on Sep 10, 2016 at 8:53am PDT

I lost the semis, though.

@krissyfied 's Semifinals re-race. Her Pink special Aero Avante was very stable this time around thanks to the oring we installed between re-races. Unfortunately, it slowed down the car and her opponent's Brocken G leaves it behind. Overall, It was an exciting first race. Beginner's luck? We'll see. #Tamiya #mini4wd #AeroAvante #Pink special. #stockrace #waltermart #hobbiesandcomicsmcs

A video posted by @miahthepwnr on Sep 10, 2016 at 9:23am PDT

For a first-timer like me with a car that runs on stock motor, I say that's not bad. Not bad at all. I'd like to thank my boyfriend, my family, my friends, my fans for the support... I kid.

Also, I may not have won the race, but I sure had the prettiest car out there. (◡‿◡✿)


Here's my boyfriend Miah and his cousin David doing a quick commentary on my car and its washi-taped batteries, heh heh.


Fun day! I seriously didn't think I would enjoy it that much, mainly because I already have my preconceived notion that it's not for me but I just really wanted to support Miah and his interests. I didn't like the long wait but I really didn't mind that much because I was entertained watching the cars fly by and eating from the numerous concessionaires in the mall. I also liked winning. Hah.


I seriously thought this hobby has died but by the looks of the peeps who are already regulars there (some even brought their sons with them), it doesn't display any signs of dying anytime soon. I just wasn't aware because it was a completely different world, so thanks Miah for continuously expanding my world. I'm not sure when we're going back, but if you are reading this and you are interested to go, the races are in the fifth level of Waltermart Makati (by the Cinemas) every Thursday and Saturday. Holler at me if you're going!

So I'm slowly easing into things and hopefully I'll regain the hang of blogging again soon. ♥

Work and the commute going to and from the office still take up a huge chunk of my weekdays, but with the convenience offered by UberPool I am able to minimize travel time and have more energy and time for the things that matter.

When I started this blog I was still working in a BPO where I didn't have Saturdays and Sundays off, and Tuesdays and Wednesdays were my "weekends". I didn't mind that much because I didn't have a bustling social life anyway and I just spent my rest days reading or cooped up in the house in front of my computer. I started a blog series called Make Me Smile Mondays where I listed down the things that make me, yes, smile. Kinda like a Things I Love Lately, if you will.

Since I'm trying to make blogging a habit again, why not jump-start that attempt with this series? So, yeah, I'm listing down here the things that made me smile this week. 

♥ Visit to Kawaii PH HQ

My friends Ana, Ava, Sarah, and Ashley started a crafting club and I am SO HAPPY to be its newest member! My Saturdays are usually reserved for my boyfriend, but we made an exception last weekend so my girls and I could go have a field trip to Kawaii PH HQ in Quezon City. It was so nice to see my old home (context: I worked and lived in QC for about four years before) again, 

And OMG everything was floor to ceiling kawaii! I loved the handmade stickers most of all but I also couldn't resist getting something that I wouldn't mind wearing for Halloween, hee hee. 

Check the rest of the photos here.

♥ Crafting Club + journalling

You know how long I've been including Moleskines on my yearly Christmas wish lists? Well, I had a Le Petit Prince Pocket Diary Moleskine before but I don't really count it because I didn't buy it with my own money. Well, this time I splurged and got myself a Le Petit Prince Weekly Diary/ Planner Moleskine and it's one of the prettiest things I own. 

It's for July 2016 to December 2017. I know there are a lot of extra pages since it's September already but that's okay because extra pages mean more space for my thoughts and washi tapes and stickers and what-have-yous.

This is the first page I created when we were at Kenny Roger's last Saturday! As the sticker says, it's a Work in Progress. (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:・ﾟ✧


I brought a huge and heavy bag filled with papers, sticky notes, stickers, pens, stamps, stamp pads, and washi tapes, and we had a ball using those and the stuff they brought! We also talked about the stuff we want to add to our stash. What a bunch of enablers, this lot! LOL.


Sooo here are my weekend hauls: stickers from the Kawaii PH HQ and Regina's Gift Shop in Shoppesville. I finally have another reason to go there aside from it being one of my boyfriend Miah's favorite haunts. Heh.

♥ Bootleg Lego = BootLego


Miah got another Batman, and when he asked me what I wanted I chose Ron Weasley because not all heroes end up being the Main Character.

♥ My TOMS Departure Pattern Mix Tablet Sleeve



It was a Christmas gift that I didn't have much use for because I don't have an iPad but I couldn't bear to part with so it just stayed in my closet, wrapped and unused, until I remembered it could be the perfect size for my Moleskine. I tried it and POOF! Perfect fit! My Moleskine now has a home to make sure the cloth cover doesn't get dirty. Meanwhile, my Penshoppe Envelope Bag has papers, pens, sticky notes, and stickers.

♥ My Favori Mini-Egg Aerator 

I have a Favori Leaf Aerator in my house but I also wanted a smaller one for the office. I got a Mini-Egg Aerator from Favori's Market! Market! kiosk earlier today as well as a bottle of Fresh Cut Grass aroma oil and oh man, my area smells so nice and clean and fresh now that it inspired me to work more!

♥ Palmolive Naturals Intensive Moisture

Speaking of scents, one scent that reminds me of summer days playing with my kitchen play-set and dolls is the coconut goodness scent of the pink variant of Palmolive Naturals. It's the shampoo and conditioner duo my Mom bought for our household and it's the scent I grew up with.

And because things change and products get reformulated, Palmolive Naturals also gave it a new advanced formula!


The new Palmolive Naturals Intensive Moisture promises intense moisturization so you can say no to dry and sticky hair and say hi to hair that's so magaan-soft, you'll love to flip it.

Now I don't have enough hair to flip because I got my hair cut less than two weeks ago, and even before then I don't think it was long enough to be flip-able, but I can attest to how soft this shampoo and conditioner made my dry and coarse hair. I've always said how I have a love-hate relationship with my hair but with the right products, it can show that it can behave nicely, too.

More than its smoothening powers though, it's still its yummy coconut scent that makes me smile as I reach for it in the bathroom during bath-time.

I grabbed my Palmolive Naturals Intensive Moisture Shampoo and Conditioner for FREE from Sample Room and if you aren't a roommie yet then what are you waiting for? All you have to do is pay for shipping and grab away to your heart's content! Sometimes, brands are even cool enough to shoulder the shipping for you, like what Palmolive Naturals did for the first 300 to grab these goodies. Visit Sample Room now and register if you haven't yet!

Add my boyfriend and their dog Hugo, and you've got some of the things that made me smile this past week. How about you? I would love to know about them!

You know those UFO Catchers in arcades? One of my ultimate dreams in life is to be able to snag a prize from one of those machines, and if that fails to at least have someone win something for me. Isn't it frustrating when you think you already got it, and then it turns out you didn't? Argh!!!

Like adulting. You think you already got it all figured out, and then it turns out you really haven't got a clue. Next thing you know you've already wasted far too many tokens with zero returns.

Anyway. Funny story. Today I wanted to withdraw from my payroll account but I entered the incorrect PIN. The reason why? The PIN I use is still the original PIN that came with my card when I got it so it doesn't hold a specific significance to me — in my defense I never got the chance to change it because I only use my payroll ATM during paydays and Maybank ATMs are quite rare.

I almost panicked but I reminded myself to stay calm and think rationally. There's a Maybank right next door so I went there immediately to ask for advice, and was told I would have to surrender my ATM card so they can replace it with a new one and a new PIN. I didn't want to because my card has my name embossed on it and if I have it replaced with something I could use straightaway I would be issued a generic [ugly] card with no embossing. I joked, wouldn't it be funny if I remember my PIN in the middle of this process?

True enough the correct PIN came to me after they have blocked my card.

What a scatterbrain. It would be hilarious if it just weren't so downright annoying.

And that was just one of a few booboos from today.

One thing I think I did right though was facilitating our weekly meeting at work. Every week we all meet and everyone answers a set question so we can all learn a little bit more about the people we work with. Our boss was out for meetings so she made me think of this week's question.

I asked, now that the Ber months are here, what are your goals that you want to accomplish before 2016 ends?

I appreciate that we all gave interesting answers and one even got a little emotional, but what we all have in common is that we all aim for self-development and to leave the year better than we were when it started.

I answered I want to save up enough for a small business I can put up with my boyfriend. I've always had creative entrepreneurial ideas but I never sustain them because I get bored, but I think I can do well when partnered with people who complement my strengths and weaknesses.

So, yes, I guess that's just how it really is. Most people really don't have a clue but so long as we have tokens, then we continue trying until we get that coveted prize.

How about you, what are some of the goals you want to accomplish before the year ends?

PS: It's my Uncle Karl's birthday today. Hope you're having a grand time celebrating with the angels, Kuya. ♥