The French novelist Gustav Flaubert’s motto was: “Be regular and orderly in your life so that you may be violent and original in your work.” I likey-likey.

I prepared for this week knowing that my special projects will be due. Over the weekend, I rediscovered Mark McGuinness’s brilliant (and free) e-book titled “Time Management for Creative People” in my files. In one of the chapters, he suggested that we ring-fence our attention and get ourselves in the right state of mind. The author had some experience in hypnotherapy that taught him how sensitive the nervous system is to triggers in our environment. In other words, we need to trigger our creative state. I chuckled at the story of a poet who liked the smell of rotten apples beneath his writing desk. Funny but very inspiring, right?

So it got me thinking what my triggers were. Let me share my perfect environment with you:

1. Well, if you know me, I like to work knowing that my office is tidy. For that, I did some last-minute changes in my office setup on Sunday night just to make sure I’ll be as comfortable as possible. Uncluttered office, check.
2. I want to be able to tackle my day all fresh and clean. So before I hit the office, I’ve already showered and eaten a hearty breakfast. My nails are done, my hair blow-dried to perfection, too. Pretty factor, check.
3. As much as I can, I try not to have an open web browser in the background to limit myself from surfing. That’s actually the biggest challenge right there. Same goes for instant messaging tools. It’s easy to get lost chatting up a storm with friends. So somehow, I got to limit my connection to the outside world when I’m working. Less distractions, check.
4. I keep a small glass and an aluminum water bottle on my desk for water breaks. It’s nice to be hydrated and have to get up to use the bathroom every once in a while to make sure that I can still feel my legs. It’s a chance to stretch and step out of the office. H20 and a breath of fresh air every once in a while, check.
5. My planner is always on my left side (I’m left-handed) so that I’m aware of my to-do list for the day. My colored pens can be seen scattered about above it. I’m getting into the habit of also marking my planner with different doodles in random colors to keep it looking like a happy place. It’s nice to be able to have a clear grasp of what I spent my time on. Colorful and effective planner, check.
6. I would love to put that I start off my day in the office with a mug of hot chocolate but then it might be the culprit behind my nocturnal asthma lately. Well we also have to be aware of sickness triggers, right? Hot chocolate = asthma experiment, check.
7. Lastly, and as quirky as it can get (I also just noticed this weird habit of mine) I like put on my current favorite shoes while I work. Most of the time, these shoes are new and in dire need for some breaking in. It must be the feeling of my constricted feet barely able to move through the material. It just simply works. I might have to allocate special funding for monthly shoe shopping though. Cute shoes, check.

Just like how I can only draw one eye, I can only draw one shoe. Thank you, fantastic tablet.

It was a nice experience being able to clearly define my triggers. It allowed me get in the moment as comfortably as possible and most importantly, I formed new habits that help me spend my working time with relaxed concentration.

How about you? What are your triggers? :)

Tribute is a series of artworks designed in honor of people, websites, interesting things, etc. For our Volume 1, I’m dedicating it to the unofficial pets.

Sadly, one December afternoon, Combo came home sick and died. One orange cat followed and then Fat Face also got afflicted. They suffered from a mysterious epidemic and soon all of kittens died except for Baaku. In just one week, 7 kittens were wiped out. It was hard seeing them suffer, and it was even harder to accept that we will not see Combo and Fat Face ever again.

Baaku was quite sick for a while but she is slowly recuperating. We could tell she’s depressed but I guess all we could do now is to take care of her as much as we can. Hopefully, her playful nature will come back. I also hope that she lives long so I could take some more pictures of her since she is clearly destined to be a model.

I will always be thankful for the memories we shared with these kitties. And Reject, we’re sorry for calling you that name just because you were very anti-social and dark and thin. :P Thanks for making us smile in watching you toy around cockroaches, ew I know, but still fun to watch. And that time when dad found you guys huddled together sleeping with one an extra tail.. only to realize that it belonged to a poor mouse you played with. I think Booni also appreciates that you didn’t bug him much when he hung out in the garden.

I missed looking at the perigee on Saturday night. But I was immensely productive, as mysterious as it had always been, as the full moon graced the night sky.

I wish I knew more about astrology aside from just reading my horoscope predictions from two newspapers (and they’re conveniently placed beside the comic strips). Full moon has always been associated as a period of growth and wholeness. I guess there must be some kind of truth in the magic of the moon. I mean, if it helps us think positively and embrace abundance, and that we are one with the universe- then I am beyond thankful for such a phenomenon.

So what kept me seriously busy on such a magical Saturday? I cleaned my room. What’s funny is that I have always been known as the most organized here in our humble home and yet it took me 15 hours and 5 bags of trash. It must be because cleaning for me is beyond putting things away and getting rid of accumulated dust. The perfect word for it is repurposing. I patiently fixed computer wires and the strategically placed the sockets within my reach because I used to have to walk behind my computer and crouch down to plug in something. My dresser is now a comfortable reading nook. My boxes are creatively mixed in one place. The treasure chest that holds my office supplies is now on top of a former garbage bin that I pimped with four rollers so I could slide it around the room. I let go of the stuff that had no purpose but just sit there. I learned that the process of organizing evolves as needs change. An organized room is not just a clean room. An organized room is a room where you do what do you best with ease.

At 4am, I was finally done. I then devoured a big slice of blueberry cheesecake as a reward before falling asleep while watching my favorite anime. Sunday was spent reading my favorite magazine. It was a weekend without work, and I vow to keep my weekends free from now on. And today, I am back here at the office with a fresh attitude. :)

As early as September, the local news had been giving us a Christmas countdown, to which I never failed to respond to with a heartfelt “No!” 100 days before Christmas: No! 40 days before Christmas: Nooooo! 25 days before Christmas: Noooooooo! (with hands pressed on my cheeks in complete horror) My niece and I also witnessed the ultimate sign of doom which is the lighting of the Advent wreath in our parish church. I swear, as soon as they light that thing, it means Christmas is just a few heartbeats away. And it was.

A lot of events unfolded amid the amount of work I had to finish before the holidays.

Early December, my mom wouldn’t let us eat dinner until we finished decorating the tree. Lol. I didn’t want to use the usual Christmas balls so we settled on colored paper, yarn, bunny baskets for candies, bunny cut-outs and silver garland. It took us quite a long time to finish the whole tree but it was definitely satisfying to see other people’s faces when they see our extraordinary tree.

Inspired by a certain furry pet we all love.

On Dec. 22, Booni turned 2. Last year, he had a banana for a cake so I rushed to the supermarket to get him an apple. I couldn’t find number 2 candles or any cute ones so we settled for these simple candles we had lying around the house. We also made bunny headbands so we would look like bunnies while celebrating with him. We, humans, had some strawberry ice cream while Booni ate a few slices of the apple.

Booni and fellow huma- bunnies.

After hurrying from store to store for last-minute Christmas shopping, I searched for some materials for a unique gift-wrapping style. It has been my tradition to come up with a different gift-wrapping technique each year. Everyone was surprised to see Christmas lights, and they kept asking me if they light up. Haha. Unfortunately, I didn’t have time to engineer a switch to make the gifts light up. It was still a huge hit though.

Goodbye, ribbons. Hello, christmas lights.

Christmas was fun as usual. We stuffed our faces with chicken, baked mac and five kinds of cake on Noche Buena. On Christmas Day, we went to visit some relatives to catch up, and yes, eat lots again.

Poor Santa.

The New Year also came quickly as I had been very busy going from one wedding to another assisting my brother. I was actually just vegetating seconds before midnight waiting for the fireworks countdown on TV. 3.. 2.. 1 Bam! The power went out. The first hours of our 2009 were spent in darkness. Hahaha. The power came back before sunrise, and then we got busy preparing for our excursion. We got ourselves a private hot springs resort where we played Rockband and abused the karaoke. Um, I abused the karaoke. We were all tired from playing, swimming, singing and eating junk food. We capped the night of January 2 near the Manila bay inside a Chinese restaurant where we stuffed our faces with sumptuous food while a beautiful fireworks display enchanted our eyes outside.

I still have yet to finish my list of goals for this year to make sure I get as specific as possible so I can envision them clearly. But in a nutshell, I wish for growth. In my career, in my personal life, in my relationships- I wish to grow and finally become what I want to be. Every day will be day one and I will grace each minute with full awareness. Yesterday, I was invited to a Christian worship celebration, and though it was different from the Catholic Sunday mass I’ve attended all my life, I can say that it was one of the most enlightening Sundays I’ve ever had. I might not officially embrace Christianity but I am sure that I will come back once in a while to refresh my soul.

Change is good and I am ecstatic for more changes this new year will bring. Happy 2009, my fellow passionisttas!