Sharing Memories

Year 2008 has passed but we shouldn't forget all those happy memories that we had and those exciting events that occurred during 2008. We should always cherish those days because we only live our lives once.

And what a better way to treasure memories and preserve them is by taking pictures of those unforgettable events and make a scrapbook! Yup scrapbooking is an undying art that brings a smile upon our faces once we open one and reminisce about the good old times.

Some may find making scrapbooks time consuming and difficult, but with SmileBox.com you have absolutely no excuse not to start making your own scrapbook. It`s easy, fun, and absolutely free to use SmileBox.com to make your very own bundle of memories. Just choose from several scrapbooking layouts and designs and share these memories with friends and loved ones by sending them Free Ecards.

I'm going to start making my own scrapbook right now and send it back to my friends in the Philippines so hope you guys start making yours too!

As Time Passed By

"Tick... Tock... Tick... Tock...," These are the sounds that I hear as I laid down alone in our living room. Everything is so quiet except for the deafening ticking of our clocks. Yes we have a clock in every part of our home and they all tick in consortium as if to warn me of the coming future.

My heart beats faster as if it wanted to outpace the clock's ticking. I'm afraid of what the future holds and as I lay there listening to the ticking of our clocks I somehow feel an impending doom falling upon me. Just laying still simply drives me insane because I realize how fast time is passing by and how much time I waste as I just lay there doing nothing.

The Year 2008 left and the Year 2009 came with great fears and excitement because I know that this year has several new events that I will have to encounter. This year will be the time when I will know if I'm qualified to go to University of Alberta, the year when I will take my driving exam for my driver's license, and they year when I will break free from the monotony and harships of working a blue collared job.

I know that more headaches and obstacles are ahead... that's why I ask God's divine intervention to strengthen me and aide me along the way. Things won't be easy, but it is these problems that makes life more exciting.

Money Is The Source of Problems

I really hate money. Money makes my life so miserable. I mean if I don't have money I can't buy the things I need and want. But if I have money, I worry how to keep that money from being wasted and from being used. You can't have too much or too less of money...

Earning money isn't that simple too. I have to work in a job where I do things that I never thought I would do like serving other people. Oh well when I become a nurse (or hopefully a doctor) in the future I will have to deal with people so being in customer service may be helpful in a way. It can help me strengthen my defenses against those unlikable and rude people by birth. I really hate my current job but I have to stick to it because I don't want to waste my free time by just staying at home and doing nothing.

I have to save money for university and I want to buy myself a car. But then things go crazy again. I have to make sure that I don't have too much money to be eligible for a Canadian Student Loan from the government and I can't have a car since it will add to my personal assets which will affect my eligibility for a student loan. I also have to put in mind that even if I save enough money for a car, I have to continue paying for gas and the car insurance so getting a car is not a great option if I plan on being a full time student. Oh well, guess I have to use the family car to get to my duty areas since my dad doesn't use it to go to work.

Sometimes, money can cause a strain in relationships. I have a friend from the Philippines who wanted to borrow 530 Canadian dollars (that's 20,000 Philippine Pesos) since my friend is having some financial difficulty. I have the money but I was having a hard time deciding whether I should lend my friend the money or not. It's a pretty huge sum (2 weeks pay) but if I don't help my friend in times of need then can I really call myself a friend? It's really hard when there are times you need money but your friends don't help you out because they are afraid of losing money. These are the times of hardship where you can tell your friends from the rest. I was also afraid of losing money. My brother doesn't pay me back the money he owes me and we live together, so what certainty do I have that my friend won't just run away with my money since my friend lives far away. Sure I can sue my friend or chase after my friend through legal means but then it would take time, effort, and more money. Plus it would lead to the end of our friendship, and I don't want that to happen.

But I lent my friend the money anyway because I place my trust and faith in this friend and that I want to be of help during this time of need. I just hope that I made the right decision because $530 is no laughing matter. I really hate worrying about money.

Why Are We So Different?

I really wonder why my brother and I are like opposite charges. Of course I'm the positive one and my brother is the negative. It's like we were raised by two different set of parents although it must be noted that we grew up in totally different environments.

I grew up in an environment where I was first mixed with "normal" Filipino kids and then suddenly sent to a new environment where the kids are privileged. By privileged I mean stinking rich with matching body guards and servants in uniforms. I was placed in an environment where I have to constantly prove my worth by making sure that I have several note worthy achievements. I was faced with high expectations from everyone and this pushed me to work harder. I had to live by myself while I studied in a high school in another city far away from home. I had to buy food from the grocery by myself, budget my allowance, and I had to do everything by myself because I lived alone. I was taught how to be independent and self-capable.

My brother on the other hand went to an average school, met average people, and my parents never expected anything from him, well except to pass and graduate that is. My brother is a spoiled brat and it is my parents who have to put extra effort in making sure he graduates from high school by doing his homework, influencing his teachers to make him pass, and they even have to waste hours trying to wake him up in the morning so that he can go to school. He is literally spoon fed and everything is given to him which never happened to me. Everything he needs is given to him and he never even have to ask for it.

Imagine asking your mom when you were a kid what a word meant and then she tells you to look it up in the dictionary while my brother on the other hand would never ask what that word means so my mom would be the one to tell him what that word meant so that he'll learn something. This is exactly how our situation is.

But I really blame my parents for how rotten my brother turned out to be. Since my parents allows him to do everything he wants, he is always out of the house and he smokes, drinks, and I presume that he does drugs too (he was already caught with marijuana and was almost expelled if it weren't for my parents). If he's not out of the house, he brings his equally pathetic and self-absorbed friends who are too busy trying to look cool and are too occupied with having fun that they forget that they should prepare for the future too and that whatever they have today is temporary.

I'm really sorry for my brother because I know that he's just wasting his life and his future. He was given an opportunity to study here in Canada and live a great life but he wastes it on his so called friends... but I shouldn't worry really, he's not my son. He's not my problem anymore. My parents aren't doing anything so why should I?