the sunset

April 4, 2013 – Charles Lijauco “the sunset”

Tonight, I went outside after I finished a film. I don’t know, I have no intention or whatsoever I just want to go outside and breathe fresh air since everybody in the house was outside, outside meaning far away from home, but me. So I stood there, about 5 meters away from the back of our house and 5 meters away from the wall that separates our place to the woods. I looked up and I saw two colors, one blue and one orange, and I’m sorry but I’m not that good with colors so I have no other words or name, just orange; then call it sunset orange. I found myself looking up for like 3 minutes. I saw it. With my eyes I saw it, the sunset it is. And the sunset for me is not just all about the sun going down, for I also heard the sound of the birds chirping, sound of the cold summer breeze touching my face and moving the strands of my hair; I saw them, the trees were dancing, bats were flying and birds are all over the place, maybe playing or something – but the thing here is I saw them. I saw life. This time I realized that all that I needed was to go outside and see the world, the paradise that we’ve taken for granted. That in here, or there we can see balance – balance in life. That even though there are wars happening in Korea and Afghanistan, that people are killing each other for pride or just because they can’t understand each other; even though there are couples breaking up, parents still working for their children, people who are spending there money in Las Vegas or Macau, that there are people that would rather sleep early because they’re hungry than stay up to watch how the sun sets, it would still go down, yes the sun would still go down. The trees would continue on dancing and the birds would still fly, as I’m writing this. It’s life, I realized. The beauty would just never stop just because people are struggling. And that’s wonderful, especially for the people who would want to see the sunset, the wonder, the life.

April 4, 2013 – Charles Lijauco “the sunset”

Now I’m ready to see the moon.

the letter that I would never send

Hey. Yes, it’s me. You might be wondering why am I writing to you or whatever but I just want to, or maybe I need to. I’ve been seeing you for as long as I can remember but I never had the chance nor the guts to ever try to talk to you or start a small conversation or something. It’s not that I’m shy or anything close to that, it’s just that I don’t want to waste your time and my time talking about nonsense and trying to figure out where small talks could lead us. Maybe I’m scared that I would annoy you, but that’s not the main reason. Not at all. So here, I just wrote this letter for you. Well, it would be great if you’d take some time reading the next few sentences. Alright here we go.

So why did I wrote this letter. Okay, please don’t assume that this, this shit is a love letter because it’s not. You won’t see any “oh goodness you’re so amazing please be mine”. No, not that kind. This letter, is created to let you know that I’m amused by your existence. Well, basically I’m amused by everyone else’s existence and stories. But about this amusement, I want to know you better. I find you interesting. I find you fascinating. I find the little things that you do strange yet still cute. This letter was to let you know that not everyone sees you the way you think they see you. That you’re worth more than that, we’re more than all the judgments and words that they throw at us. Most of all, I find you original. 

But then I realized, all these things – these things that I’ve said and wrote, they’re not really you, instead they’re me. It’s not how you show yourself but how I see you – how I want to see you. I see you as this and that, but really, I know nothing. I don’t know what you’re doing when you’re staying late at night. I don’t know the reasons behind your smiles, if they’re real or not. And I think I was being unfair, all these times I was. I judged you before I even knew you. 

No words. When I finally summed up all these ideas, no words.

But I’m hoping, that soon I would be able to write about you. How you sleep, laugh, smile, cry and what are your favorite books and how much you love pizza. I want to. And I hope that I would be given the chance to know you better, so that next time, I would have the words, the real ones, to at least define your amusing existence. 

 

A Broken String | Final PE Class | Oh so Random

I created this post to relieve the stress that I feel inside my head. Or my brain. Last two weeks before the summer break! WHAT TO EXPECT! Okay now, calm down me and you. I can feel the tense inside. Chill. (But how can I chill if I have exams this week and final exams next week. So chill yaah face, dear blogger.. and that’s me.)

So I was playing my guitar, and singing, while recording at the same time, when suddenly my 3rd string made a wonderful sound that made the song even better than ever! And yes, I was shocked because I thought my G-string would never leave me, I was wrong. LESSON: Don’t expect and assume you fools. Or me fool. And the wonderful thing about this experience is that everything was recorded – from my beautiful singing to the “I GIVE UP” sound of the G-string. So I was kidding when I said beautiful singing, never mind. Then I came up with the idea to play the instrument without the broken string, and guess what, I ate a slice of pizza! What no, I mean it didn’t sound great, of course. LESSON: Every piece is important! Grandma and grandpa should know this. Unfortunate.

dasfdfgjh7kj87j7687l8l89;8;8;  - fasedfgewrvg – TIME TRAVEL!

FINAL PE CLASS! After years of sweating (and watching people go crazy), I would finally have my last class in physical education. I would surely miss all the fun and games… and prizes… and medals and trophies given, not in our PE class. LESSON: Sometimes you’ll miss things and people that were/are never yours. Oh can you feel it! (YES! No more wearing of the annoying jogging pants.) But really, I would miss PE – the only subject when and where I can relax and laugh at others freely. I kidddd.

And about the Oh so Random. Nothing.

Thoughts

“I’m about to talk to you. Here, I’m coming. Oh no. No. No. I realized I don’t want to annoy you. Maybe right now, you’re busy or something; but even if you’re not, I still won’t talk to you. I feel like I’ve annoyed you for so many times now. But just you know, it kills me every time I have to stop myself from talking to you. If I could just.. Ugh. Never mind. Maybe next time? Or maybe not. Or never.”

- March 5

“That feeling of yes, I want to write something, but I just can’t seem to put the right words together. In my head they’re perfect – all words in their proper places making sense; but outside my head when I’m trying to write them down, no words. I have words, but they’re not perfect; therefore, I’m not pleased. Oh please words, let me write you down so everything would be alright.”

- March 5

 

Valentine’s Day Special: Against All Odds

For the past weeks, I’ve been thinking of a good idea for my Valentine’s Day Special. I was thinking about defining love, and all its components or whatever. But I just don’t feel like it. I mean, for once I don’t want to pretend that I know everything about it – when in real life, I don’t.. want to stop eating pizza. I’m so random.

So last February 12, 2013, my brother and his girlfriend celebrated their 2nd Year Anniversary through the Internet (via Skype). Why? Long-Distance Relationship, sir. And if someone out there needs a great story, then their story would just exceed your expectations. The boy is from the Philippines; the girl is from London. Gotta hate the distance but gotta love the trust, loyalty and real love inside it. Great job, brother. Great job.

I would like to share this video that my sweet brother made for her girlfriend:

I’m not here to tell how they met. I’m not here to tell their struggles. But I’m here to tell everyone that in whatever form, whatever situation, and/or whatever distance that separates people, it/they cannot be a major/sufficient reason to easily give up on someone you love. If you love someone, then break through the walls and reach for the moon.

No matter what, fight for it. Giving up and letting someone go would never be the first option – but they would always be there, waiting at the second position.

It’s amazing, how people can create different love stories – from a long-distance relationship, loser-guy-and-a-popular-girl, badass-man-and-a-sweet-girl, rich-guy-and-a-poor-girl to many others. We’re different in many ways, our personalities are unique – and so our love stories.

Life is awesome. And it’s AWESOME-R with love at the center of it. Oh it’s nice to feel inspired. Happy Valentine’s Day!

 

Something from my 2/10/13

Funny how we treat other people as miracles-slash-kings-and-queens-of-the-concrete-jungle and all that. We see someone with the face of an angel, which in any case is impossible because we haven’t really seen an angel in real life, and we start treating them as someone unreachable and we put them in the pedestal. Like “Oh my gosh she’s so beautiful that her personality doesn’t even matter. She’s my queen! Yes, instantly.”. Maybe, just maybe, we should start seeing people as people and not miracles and someone as high as the sky and as far as the moon. Maybe we should start treating everyone as ordinary people who also feels the same thing as we do, eats the same foods as we do, of course drinks the same water as we do, and most specially, gets hurt and problems as we get them Every. Single. Time. All these and more. By these things, I think we can avoid many complications. Like we can now be sensitive enough that everybody needs the love and attention the same that we do. That they would sometimes feel like we only like people because we see them as queens and kings, not as themselves. Maybe, just maybe.

And it’s called…

You set everything about the perfect girl and how she should be nice, smart and not like the others who would flirt all day. But suddenly, all these preparations and dreaming would be ‘garbage’ because you would meet a girl that was nowhere from your expectations. It’s crazy. You think you’re too smart and you will never be fooled by such a girl; but no, that’ll never be the case, because you’ll fall. And before you even know it, you’ve fallen into a trap and you must find your way to get out of it. You created the trap and became the victim of it. It’s a matter of choosing whether you would take a risk and continue on with the trap or be careful enough to try and find your way out of it. Either way, you’ll learn and grow up. The thing is, if ever you’ll survive the fall and get out of it, make sure you’ll never make the same mistake again. Because if you do, then you didn’t learn from the past. You just stayed with the trap and got out of it to fall again to the same shit. People can be stupid. Even the smartest ones can be stupid. We can all be stupid when it comes to dealing with love. How I wish, that you would be smart enough to know what’s right from wrong – what’s worth the risk and what’s not – and most especially, what do you want most or what do you need most. Well, that’s tough, and it must be – because it wouldn’t be an integral part of life if it wasn’t or if it would not be.

15 Things (That) You Should Give Up To Be Happy

Sometimes having too much can cause you stress. Sometimes being too powerful can pull you down. And sometimes eating too much can make you fat – which is a proven fact, trust me. Anyway, while browsing the Internet, I was fortunate enough to have read this article. And now, it’s my obligation to share it to you guys – so pay attention.

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Here is a list of 15 things which, if you give up on them, will make your life a lot easier and much, much happier. We hold on to so many things that cause us a great deal of pain, stress and suffering – and instead of letting them all go, instead of allowing ourselves to be stress free and happy – we cling on to them. Not anymore. Starting today we will give up on all those things that no longer serve us, and we will embrace change. Ready? Here we go:

1. Give up your need to always be right. There are so many of us who can’t stand the idea of being wrong – wanting to always be right – even at the risk of ending great relationships or causing a great deal of stress and pain, for us and for others. It’s just not worth it. Whenever you feel the ‘urgent’ need to jump into a fight over who is right and who is wrong, ask yourself this question: “Would I rather be right, or would I rather be kind?”Wayne Dyer. What difference will that make? Is your ego really that big?

2. Give up your need for control. Be willing to give up your need to always control everything that happens to you and around you – situations, events, people, etc. Whether they are loved ones, coworkers, or just strangers you meet on the street – just allow them to be. Allow everything and everyone to be just as they are and you will see how much better will that make you feel.

“By letting it go it all gets done. The world is won by those who let it go. But when you try and try. The world is beyond winning.” Lao Tzu

3. Give up on blame. Give up on your need to blame others for what you have or don’t have, for what you feel or don’t feel. Stop giving your powers away and start taking responsibility for your life.

4. Give up your self-defeating self-talk. Oh my. How many people are hurting themselves because of their negative, polluted and repetitive self-defeating mindset? Don’t believe everything that your mind is telling you – especially if it’s negative and self-defeating. You are better than that.

“The mind is a superb instrument if used rightly. Used wrongly, however, it becomes very destructive.” Eckhart Tolle

5. Give up your limiting beliefs about what you can or cannot do, about what is possible or impossible. From now on, you are no longer going to allow your limiting beliefs to keep you stuck in the wrong place. Spread your wings and fly!

“A belief is not an idea held by the mind, it is an idea that holds the mind” Elly Roselle

6. Give up complaining. Give up your constant need to complain about those many, many, maaany things – people, situations, events that make you unhappy, sad and depressed. Nobody can make you unhappy, no situation can make you sad or miserable unless you allow it to. It’s not the situation that triggers those feelings in you, but how you choose to look at it. Never underestimate the power of positive thinking.

7. Give up the luxury of criticism. Give up your need to criticize things, events or people that are different than you. We are all different, yet we are all the same. We all want to be happy, we all want to love and be loved and we all want to be understood. We all want something, and something is wished by us all.

8. Give up your need to impress others. Stop trying so hard to be something that you’re not just to make others like you. It doesn’t work this way. The moment you stop trying so hard to be something that you’re not, the moment you take of all your masks, the moment you accept and embrace the real you, you will find people will be drawn to you, effortlessly.

9. Give up your resistance to change. Change is good. Change will help you move from A to B. Change will help you make improvements in your life and also the lives of those around you. Follow your bliss, embrace change – don’t resist it.
“Follow your bliss and the universe will open doors for you where there were only walls” Joseph Campbell

10. Give up labels. Stop labeling those things, people or events that you don’t understand as being weird or different and try opening your mind, little by little. Minds only work when open. “The highest form of ignorance is when you reject something you don’t know anything about.” Wayne Dyer

11. Give up on your fears. Fear is just an illusion, it doesn’t exist – you created it. It’s all in your mind. Correct the inside and the outside will fall into place.
“The only thing we have to fear, is fear itself.” Franklin D. Roosevelt

12. Give up your excuses. Send them packing and tell them they’re fired. You no longer need them. A lot of times we limit ourselves because of the many excuses we use. Instead of growing and working on improving ourselves and our lives, we get stuck, lying to ourselves, using all kind of excuses – excuses that 99.9% of the time are not even real.

13. Give up the past. I know, I know. It’s hard. Especially when the past looks so much better than the present and the future looks so frightening, but you have to take into consideration the fact that the present moment is all you have and all you will ever have. The past you are now longing for – the past that you are now dreaming about – was ignored by you when it was present. Stop deluding yourself. Be present in everything you do and enjoy life. After all life is a journey not a destination. Have a clear vision for the future, prepare yourself, but always be present in the now.

14. Give up attachment. This is a concept that, for most of us is so hard to grasp and I have to tell you that it was for me too, (it still is) but it’s not something impossible. You get better and better at with time and practice. The moment you detach yourself from all things, (and that doesn’t mean you give up your love for them – because love and attachment have nothing to do with one another,  attachment comes from a place of fear, while love… well, real love is pure, kind, and self less, where there is love there can’t be fear, and because of that, attachment and love cannot coexist) you become so peaceful, so tolerant, so kind, and so serene. You will get to a place where you will be able to understand all things without even trying. A state beyond words.

15. Give up living your life to other people’s expectations. Way too many people are living a life that is not theirs to live. They live their lives according to what others think is best for them, they live their lives according to what their parents think is best for them, to what their friends, their enemies and their teachers, their government and the media think is best for them. They ignore their inner voice, that inner calling. They are so busy with pleasing everybody, with living up to other people’s expectations, that they lose control over their lives. They forget what makes them happy, what they want, what they need….and eventually they forget about themselves.  You have one life – this one right now – you must live it, own it, and especially don’t let other people’s opinions distract you from your path.

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This list is special. Kudos to the writer/creator of that list. And I must say that all those things would mean nothing if we, as readers, would not practice them in real life. So maybe, we should try? No, we must try. And for the results, be free to share them here so that we would have some discussions. Smile.

I don’t think the article would need further explanation. Don’t forget to share it!

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So here’s my source.

“Hashtag” #Happiness

And I’m Back

Hey yeah. I think I’ve been away for too long now that my blog has been a ghost town for you people. To share, I found some ghosts residing in here and what’s strange is that they’ve been calling my name since last week. Yeah, I’m weird. Well anyway, this would be the start of something new. Though this line has been a cliche since High School Musical, which is an uhm show, I need to use it to describe everything. Okay, let’s see how would I explain this line.

I’ve been so fortunate to be recognized by many people now. From my writing skills, if I have them, to my academic and all that skills – I can never deny they see me as that person. Well yeah, those things got into my head. I’ve been so proud. I’ve been so so proud. Upon seeing my name on the top of that Dean’s List, I got my head thinking how great I am. I took them – all the lovely praises and compliments, I took them. Suddenly, I found myself in a hole – a hole that has been waiting for me to fall and be inside it. I almost fell, right at this very moment, I’m still trying to get out of that hole that has been trying to eat me. Just now, I realized how careless I am in my life. I’ve spent too much time doing nonsense and less time on things that would make me a better person – better than I was yesterday.

I stopped blogging because I was too busy doing those nonsense. I’ve made those excuses that I was just busy that’s why I stopped writing/blogging. But really, that’s not the reason – and that will never be a valid reason. This article is a heat check – let me just see if I can still write and put my thoughts into it.

The story would be long, and maybe now is not the right time to talk about it

I’m just so happy that I’m back now. I’ll never leave again. I guess I just need to constantly remind myself that I’m still a nobody in this world. That I still have to make a name for myself. That all these praises and achievements must serve as motivations for me to work harder and be even better.

Again, thank you for reading this. Ladies and gentlemen, the opinionated blogger is back.

Ways to be RICH (Successful)

“Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to our social gathering where no “social climbers” or poor people are allowed. We are the best from all these creatures and therefore let us eat all our cash! Uhm, reminders, don’t forget to pay the bills before you leave so that our servants would have something in their wallets; let’s have some mercy fellas!” Uhh, tired of the same rulers in the society. Some of those who are on top of the world, enjoying their money, and driving nice cars, just don’t care about the welfare of those who are in need anymore, as if they did in the past. But don’t worry, I have in me the best solutions to your problems! Don’t worry, I’m here to share the secrets to be rich and famous just like those good-looking-because-of-big-wallets people! Yey, I’m sure you’re so excited to know them, right? Alright, let’s start.

5) ENTER SHOWBIZ! Are you one of those good-looking-without-even-a-single-or-perhaps-two-talents in your arsenal? Then you’re into it! Look, just use your smile and get the sympathy of those who are obsessed to beautiful faces! I’m sure you’ll be a big hit because fans will scream! “Oh my, that girl/guy is so pretty/handsome, I wanna marry her (and leave her/him when she/he gets ugly)! You know they like you because of your face, lucky you. Don’t worry, “talent” managers nowadays are willing to sacrifice their breakfast, lunch, 2nd lunch, and dinner for you! They would teach you how to dougie sing, dance, act, and be liked by many people (tho you’re already liked because of your pretty annoying face)! Congratulations to you! You now belong to this élite group of people! Enjoy earning money! Don’t try hard, because as they say, the ugly is the one who must try harder. You’re so fortunate that you’d have a year or two to make your career blossom and earn cold cash like never before!

TIP/S: Join a reality show, or appear in a ____ show. Good luck!

4) ENTER POLITICS! Oh Geez, here we go. This is probably one of the most effective ways to get some more money in your pocket (you need 514 pockets for these bucks, trust me, I counted them). But you know it ain’t easy to enter in this “profession”, you’ll need a lot of those so-called friends-because-you’re-a-politician true friends to lean on and to help you in the campaign. You’d have to spend more than a million for the campaign period, but if you have been nice to your constituents since last year, then half-a-million would do it for you. What’s the lesson to spend less during the election? Impress them by doing something good; don’t show bad manners! The real richness would come the time you’ve won the election! So now you’re ready to corrupt the municipal fund! No one can stop you now! Not even your Vice or assistant because he/she’s the same as you! Of course, your constituents, let’s not forget them! Build some establishments, sidewalk benches, waiting-sheds and others to be able to give back, but don’t forget to put your name in there for the next elections! Oh so lucky, good luck on multiplying your capital for that job!

TIP/S: Be sure that you’ll be under a strong party. It’ll help you.. or maybe not.

3) CASINO & LOTTERY, BABY! Waste your money here! Try your luck here! Who knows, maybe you’re the next millionaire! Alright, you’re working 6 to 8 hours in a day to earn your daily wage/salary with their corresponding OT pays/bonuses. And you know, it’s so, so, so, so practical to spend 5 to 7 percent of it on sweepstakes! Yes that’s right, you might be the next owner of a big house in an exclusive village, but now you’re still a loser for them. Oh never mind lottery, we have casinos! You can see so many casinos here and everywhere! You don’t have to go to Vegas or to Macau just to waste spend your money! In every hotels here, we have casinos! Play some cards, dice, and place some chips over there and maybe you’d be the one that they’re looking for! You might just take home x10 or more of your placed money! I’m so excited for that one! Then if you win that, place that for bet again! Don’t stop until you don’t have enough of money to go home and feed your children! In a casino, you would not only earn money! You’d also earn enemies friends (choose the rich right one)! Oh, there is nothing more exciting than wasting your money to feed the greedy!

TIP/S: Learn to give some bonuses to those people who supported you during the fight/play; especially those who are behind your back.

2) FOOL OTHER PEOPLE! There is nothing more heartwarming than seeing your colleagues go down and beg to your knees! Now that’s inspiring! You could be a big time illegal recruiter who would demand some money to clients to work on their horrible future papers! Don’t forget to give them your kind words, how sincere. If you don’t like that one, then maybe you’d like to scam other people! There are many ways to scam other people but I don’t know any (innocent guy right here). The best way of fooling other people to be rich? Force them to be drug dealers. Ow so dirty right? But no! They would like to be caught by the police and later end up being jailed and all that. And you? You’ll just be sitting there behind the big walls guarded by men in their black (for funeral) Armani suit. As they say, learn to control people and you’d be successful! Oyeah, you have it right there and all that we need is for your little smart brain to go on working. Continue being nice to them!

1) BE SINCERE. I don’t like to break the humor out of this but I just need to point out my point (what????). I’ve been an observer of this society. I saw so many things that perhaps triggered me to write something about the reality we are in. It’s so undeniable that there are only a few rich people there who can understand the cry of those who are under the triangle. They can hear those “enough is enough” but I don’t think they can help them “enough”. You know why? Because many of  those who are on top just care about themselves. They are the ones who are insulting the poor. They don’t want the less fortunate to mingle with them, for they call them “social climbers” once they did. I even saw someone tweeted that BLACKBERRY should have a price increase so the poor won’t be able to afford it. So what now? You’re cool because of that? Go eat your Blackberry and even your Apple, then can you do me a favor? Please hit your head in a concrete wall and wake up. I believe that there is still time for you to change; a chance to make everything right and serve our countrymen. We are being fooled by the spark of those money that we forgot the true meaning or richness. We stopped enjoying time with our families because we are too busy expanding our financial resources. If you’re happy now, then good, but how about tomorrow? Would you be?

I believe, more than anything else, that to reach the success, you must be sincere on what you are doing. Make sure that you like what you are doing and you’d be happy at the end. As Mr. Eleanor Roosevelt said, ”Happiness is not a goal; it is a by-product.” and so it is. We must do our thing each and everyday and see if we would be happy at the end of everything that we’ve done. Success, for me, is not about the money or the status in life, but it is how you made yourself and someone happy.

TIP/S: Have a great life. Grow up. Change for the better and hope for the best results. Do your thing each and every day. Be concern. Be sincere. Pray to God. And as I always say, SPREAD THE LOVE!

Congratulations, now you’re rich.

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I’m selling a house in Vegas. Tweet me for details. Okay, just kidding. 

Feel free to tweet me anytime: 
https://twitter.com/#!/charleslijauco

God Bless Us All!