Cold and Breezy Night

It's 12 degrees celsius tonight at Al-Khobar.  The cold and breezy evening is a welcome respite from my hectic work and decided to dine-in at Golden Juice near our flat.  I ordered my favorite broasted chicken, still hot and spicy. This kind of weather in Saudi Arabia is mostly welcomed by locals and expatriates like me. For almost three months we will have this kind of cold season. 

Unforgettable - Natalie Cole Dies at Aged 65

One of my favorite singers Natalie Cole died at age 65 last Thursday (December 31, 2015) night at a   Los Angeles hospital.  Natalie Cole rose to fame as an R&B as well as jazz singer with her hit songs Inseparable, Miss You Like Crazy, Someone That I Used to Love, I Live For Your Love, and my favorite among her hits Starting Over Again. She is the daughter of the great Nat King Cole whose song Unforgettable was a huge hit in the United States and all over the world.   Her greatest success came from her 1991 album, Unforgettable ... With Love, which paid tribute to her father Nat King Cole. The hit song Unforgettable saw her voice remixed with her father's voice. She won for that album at the Grammy awards 1992 for Album of the Year, Record of the Year (Unforgettable), Best Traditional Pop Performance (Unforgettable).  

I was deeply saddened by the demise of Miss Natalie Cole.  Actually, only last month I was able to buy her CD "Natalie Cole, Still Unforgettable" at Rotana Music Store at Al-Rashid Mall, Al-Khobar.  Even if she is gone already, I will continue to play her songs over and over again which are so close to my heart.  She will be greatly missed by her family and fans around the world. Goodbye Miss Natalie Cole, you are now with our creator ....

Welcome 2016!

Image courtesy of Shutterstock

I would like to welcome Year 2016 with great hope and luck in our lives.  2016 comes as the Year of Fire Monkey according to the Chinese zodiac sign.  Lucky colors for this year are blue, black, and gray (blue is one of my favorite colors), and those who ventures in shipping business, banking, and tourism will be successful this year.  I would like to greet each and everyone a Happy and Blessed New Year!  May the good Lord Jesus Christ bless us with good health, financial stability, success in our careers, and most all, a family that will stay together forever.  Let's welcome Year 2016 with optimism in our lives and joy within our hearts!

LOVE and PEACE on Christmas!

Photo courtesy of www.quoteshunger.com

Christians around the world are celebrating and commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ today. It is noteworthy to say that we spread peace and love around the world and show our compassion to the poor, the neglected, people who suffered from the consequences of war, the continuous persecution of Christians around the world, the refugees and migrant people who are leaving their war torn countries to seek refuge to a safer and peaceful place.  We need to remember that Jesus Christ teachings is to spread love, first and foremost.  It is were we Christians had been indoctrinated to this teachings.  People need to understand that LOVE is what we need to have peace in this world, so we can experience the freedom from fear of violence, harmony together even with other religions.  I'm always praying for peace on earth, because we are watching everyday the horrors of wars and conflicts  of other nations, terrorism, the civil war in Syria and some parts of Africa.  I believe, we Christians need to set an example to the whole world that we are for peace and not for war. I wish all Christian nations a blessed and peaceful Christmas!

Miss Universe 2015 is Miss Philippines

Congratulations to our very own Miss Philippines Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach for winning the title of Miss Universe 2015 at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas last December 20, 2015.  No matter what happened during the announcement of the winner, she truly deserved to take the crown of Miss Universe!  It's her destiny to be Miss Universe because she is intelligent, articulate, beautiful, and humble. This is a wonderful gift to all our countrymen and all Filipinos around the world during this Christmas season.  Mabuhay ang Pilipinas! Mabuhay ka Miss Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach!  You made us proud again!

Photo Courtesy of Miss Universe Organization

Photo courtesy of Miss Universe Organization

Photo courtesy of Miss Universe Organization

Celebration

What a wondeful day to start and celebrate my birthday!  Cold and breezy morning!  Thank God for the life you had given me.  Still going strong and healthy inspite of the tough times and challenges I had been through during 2015.  We still have 17 days to go to greet 2016!  I promise myself to bounce back this coming new year.  I would like to thank my family for all the support they had given me especially my mother, my sister, and my son who are always there through thick and thin.  They are my inspiration in my life.

      

Missing in December

After five years of going vacation every year in December, this is the first time I will skip to celebrate my Christmas and New Year. Actually,  I had my original plan to leave this December 5 but due to the long vacation extension of the Indian colleague in our department whom I'm relieving, I have to change my vacation plan early next year. I will be missing so much the camaraderie and spirit of Christmas season with my family and relatives this year.  For an OFW like me, Christmas and New Year is so special for me because this is the season I can enjoy my vacation with the family.  Bonding together like going to the mall, shopping together, eating and dining together in a special restaurant, and most of all celebrating Christmas together especially during Noche Buena and on the eve of the coming new year watching the fireworks outside our house are all the things I will be missing this year.  Anyway, I will just make up with my family during my vacation early next year.  But for sure, I will miss them so much.  I will try to make my Christmas happy here in the kingdom, alone. 

I will miss this one

This one

And the camaraderie

18 Years

I just celebrated my 18 years with the company.  Time flies so fast and eighteen years of hard work and dedication seems too short to think about.  Every year, whenever I reach another milestone of being an OFW or simply being an economic migrant, I always make sure to give myself a present, either a not so expensive item or an expensive one.  This year,  I bought a Philips DVD Soundmachine which can play DVD, VCD, MP3, WMA-CD, CD(RW) and Picture CD with FM stereo tuner. The item is a little bit pricy but I really enjoyed the quality of the sound and the design of the soundmachine is a class of its own. Furthermore it is portable.  Anyway, congratulations to myself. I thank God for all the blessings he had given me for all these years.