I recently stopped by ADNOC Oasis, a convenience store chain owned by the biggest gasoline station in Abu Dhabi, and saw wooden puzzles being sold together with the globe version of the rubiks cube. I hardly see these nowadays that made me recall how puzzle was founded in the 17th century, i.e. when a London engraver and mapmaker mounted a map on a wood sheet and used it in teaching geography.

Once you buy them, you get to disassemble and reassemble the pieces. So I proceeded with the wooden airplane. I thought it’ll be easy; but it required much patience to fix it. Or maybe I’m slow. Hahaha. Hence, I didn’t want the wooden car to be “out of order”. I just left it like that. (*grins*). You want real adult puzzles out there? Try those pretty side tables and other items from Ikea (or its counterpart) that you need to assemble all by yourself unless you ask somebody else who has better inductive reasoning aptitude to fix it for you or you qualify for a free delivery and assembly upon meeting the purchase threshold. Until now I still can’t fix the paper lamp I got from them. (I once thought that I should have just begged from Ikea to sell to me that lamp on display. LOL.) Even if I’m so tempted to outsource its assembly, I’m still enjoying the challenge of putting together the pieces. I’ll share a photo when it’s done. I hope that’s soon!

May we all sustain the energy and inspiration needed in picking the pieces of the puzzle (it’s everywhere!) we encounter in our own lives.

I am facing a major situation. That is I shall attend an ARABIC wedding for the first time. It was a mixture of excitement, hesitation and panic when I got the invite. This is the third time I have been invited during my entire stay in the UAE, but I can not and shall not refuse this one because she is a (charming) pal.

This is another side of me which is not very obvious in my blog but is known to people dear to me. I am extra cautious when attending weddings especially with the aspect that I would be photographed. What I realized is that wedding photos especially those in groups will probably remain “forever”. The smiles and faces which will be displayed on several albums and online archives will be checked once in a while by different generations. So you need to have that look which will launch a thousand words, huh; that aura that your grandchildren will be proud to be associated with you.

I have been part of several weddings already, served varied roles. Needless to say, the femme preparation is always more difficult because coordination of too many things are required. The heart of it is to find the suitable dress first and all else would follow. Since this is an Arabic wedding, it will be extra challenging because I need something that is decent enough to cover me. (In Emirati weddings, there are separate receptions for the female and male.) As I have a reasonable orientation of what they wear during the reception (there is a thin line to being too flashy and plain), I thought of going for vintage clothes because these never fail to save ladies. I started sorting from the lovable 1960s vintage clothes. It did not take so long and I finally found what I need!

(This Dollyrockers which is from 1970s vintage clothes will be perfect for that night.)

I’ve been following this blog for almost two years now. I, sort of, have a thing for thoughts charmingly shared through visuals and alike (other examples are Milk Toof and Buhay Buhangin Series by Blogusvox).

This one’s sweet:

In a way, this reminds me of Michelle’s words about being married to Barack Obama, on Christmas at the White House: An Oprah Primetime Special,

I think we have a wonderful marriage. I love my husband. He’s my best friend. But I always like to talk honestly about it because I think about other young couples who think there are no struggles to get here. And there are. That’s part of it. The message is – work through the struggles. Start out with somebody that you respect and that you trust so that when you hit the bumps that are inevitable you always have that foundation. I tell Barack — as mad as he can make me — I look at him and I say, I really LIKE you. I like you, and I like the way you think and I like the person you are. It’s hard to stray too far, to stay mad too long, when the person is someone you like.

Note: No, this is not turning into a shoe blog. I just realized that I already have five entries about footwear.

One of my closest colleagues in the office recently vacationed in her motherland, Casablanca (Morocco) and she brought something for me. The famous Moroccan sweets (sorry, I forgot to take a photo and I ate fast) and a pair of traditional shoes.

Meet my newest pair!

Moroccan shoes are known for the pointed style, flat heeled and very comfortable leather piece. Believe me, the web feeds are not exaggerating. The leather quality is remarkable.

I was so ignoramus that when she handed it to me I was trying to move the end design. I did not know it was traditionally like that. Heehee. I told her that the color is very Chinese. At least in my eyes. It was a little short for my feet (I am size 39). But it doesn’t matter, there’ll be a way to manage it. I’m excited to wear it.