Day dreamer and Believer: August 2018

I actually don’t know where to begin this post because I have so many thoughts running through my mind. I have a lot of sentiments, rants and realizations that I cannot contain anymore. I’ll try to put it into words and hopefully you’ll read it until the end. This is going to be lengthy.

How to be a Dentistry Student? I’m currently in my first semester in my (hopefully) last year as a Dentistry student. I don’t know how I was able to surpass every semester in my college years but I thank God He always helps me make a way. Dentistry is actually not a difficult course if you are good in memorizing and critical thinking, if you are born with good and fast hands that can easily cope up with deadlines and delays, if there would be no interruptions in clinic hours (no clinic days), if you have the skills in clinical and laboratory works, if you always have patients for every procedure during clinic hours, if you have all the expensive instruments that are required, if you can pay your tuition fee on time and if you’re positive enough to think that you can surpass everything on time. Well, in my case, the only thing that I have from all those mentioned above is the positive thinking that keeps me going until now.

When I was in High School until my second year in college I see myself as one of the outstanding students. I graduated with honors in SBC and was in the Dean’s list for 2 years in College. I felt I was good enough until I entered the proper years. All the things that I learned in my High School and PreDent years were just all basic stuffs compared to what we have now in the proper years. I thought I was good in critical thinking until I had General and Oral Microscopic Anatomy. Hindi sya biro promise. This was the first time I had several failing scores in quizzes. I thought I was good in memorizing until I had Oral Surgery I, Oral Surgery II and Oral Pathology. I thought I wouldn’t survive every semester that I had in my previous years. I literally have to memorize the whole book because every information written on it is important and included in our quizzes and exams. There’s just too much information that my brain cannot absorb anymore. These subjects made me feel what a real college student feels like. When I arrive home at 8pm after Surgery classes I rest my mind, eat and sleep and wake up at around 3am the next morning. It is when I start to study and memorize. The only consequence is that I feel sleepy in school during lectures. Eto lang ang masasabi ko, hindi biro maging med student. Mahirap. Kailangan basa ng basa, aral ng aral. Actually wala naman talagang katapusan ang pag aaral na to kahit pa makagraduate ng 6 years or 7 years. Hanggang sa practice kailangan nadadagdagan pa rin ang knowledge. Kailangan nag aaral pa din.

I’m not born with fast hands. I’m not exposed in dental works when I was young because there’s no dentist in the family (the closest would be my mom’s second cousin who encouraged me to study Dentistry). Whenever there would be a cancellation of classes, or change in schedule I actually freak out that I may not be able to finish the long procedures in my clinical requirements on time. Advance ako mag isip kaya lagi akong may sinusunod na schedule. Actually I have many planners for my clinic hours. Pag nag announce ang school na walang pasok sira na ang sched ko. That's one thing I hate the most. I hate when my schedule is not followed. But as times pass by, I learned to cope up with quick change of schedules and just get over it. Dati kase I over think every single requirement everytime magkaka problema sa schedule ko like I am suppose to do the impression after my patient get approved pero hindi naman na approve nung day ng approval at kailangan ko ulit maghanap ng bagong pasyente. Wala naman akong magagawa. Yes, nakakasakit ng ulo lalo na pag may deadline. I realized that there are really things that I cannot control even if I dedicate my time and put my heart in it. Tanggapin na lang and bawing-bawi dapat sa susunod.

Patients, patients… kailangan din madaming patience. Akala nyo ba madali maghanap ng pasyente? Uhm, for restoration(pasta), oral prophylaxis (linis) and extractions a lot of people are willing so there wouldn’t be a problem. But if the requirements are Anterior and Posterior RCT, PJC, Fixed bridge, dentures and Perio I don’t think finding ideal patients would be an easy one. Whenever I look for patients it’s either I’m with my mom or I’m with Paulo. Nakakarating kami ng bundok or sa mga lugar na first time pa lang namin napupuntahan. We go to places with indigent persons who cannot afford dental treatments or places not reached by dental missions. We are able to find patients but the down side is, most people there were not able to afford in going to school and that means no read no write. Sino bang middle class ang may perio case?? Most likely indigent people talaga. But, ideal patients nga sila but because they cannot understand the treatment plan for them they are hard to convince about the treatment. Just earlier, I called the perio clinical px that Paulo and I found 2 weeks ago. I asked her if she could come and told me that ayaw na nya kase nabalitaan nya na sobrang madugo daw pag nagpalinis ng ngipin kase yun yung naexperience nung kakilala nya. It is not really bloody like madugo na parang surgery. Pero hello, perio clinical yun. Simpleng pag nag toothbrush nga minsan pag may gingivitis nadugo na ang gums, what more if for almost 35-40 years of existence e wala pa ding experience sa pagpapalinis or pagpapadentista and there is a problem with the oral hygiene. Kahit siguro anong ganda ng explanation pag hindi talaga willing ang pasyente wala talagang magagawa. Another problem is after an appointment or two (especially for long procedures) there are patients who are not coming back to continue the whole procedure due to certain reasons and excuses or sometimes, they are not replying to our calls and texts anymore or the worst is pagbabababaan pa ng phone. This is one of the causes of our delay. We have to look for another patient, go through approvals, laboratory tests and defenses before we could start another procedure. I hope my future patients would understand the struggle that we face when they leave us. We’re not after the requirement only but we’re after their satisfaction and the success of our treatment for them. Masarap sa feeling na ngingiti ang pasyente sa harap mo pagkatapos mo gawin ang treatment lalo na pag anterior ang involved! Haha! Nakakataba ng puso na you were able to see the difference of their smile before and after the treatment. I have several patients who I’m really grateful for. They are the ones who were with me until I finished the procedure whether short or long. A simple “thank you” from them already makes my heart melt. I'm really thankful for their trust. :)

Lastly, Being a Dentistry student is one of the most expensive course I know. This is not to brag about me being a Dentistry student but this is me being proud of how far I’ve come through the means of my single mom. I didn’t come from a rich family but I’m sure I’m raised by an industrious and “madiskarte” mom. I don’t want my mom to freak out about my tuition fee so a month before enrollment I already tell her how much it would be. This semester’s tuition fee is so far the most expensive (around Php 78k plus). We also spend almost Php 10k for our consumables every sem in the clinic and would be spending Php 20k or more for the remaining surgery materials that we will be buying (luxators and pedo forceps). There are a lot of expenses that my mom and I are going through in every semester but the thing is that I make sure to utilize all my dental instruments, take care of it and just do my best as a Dentistry student. For those parents who have children who dream of becoming a dentist in the future, let them be. I know some who wants to enter this course pero natatakot sila kase daw magastos, baka hindi kaya or whatsoever. I tell you, you can! Dumaan din kami dyan ng mama ko. We thought we couldn't but we're almost in the finish line. Isipin nyo na lang, Kinaya nga ng mama ni Shaira magpa aral ng dentista, ako pa kaya! :) And for those children who are willing to take up this course, magsipag kayo and show your parents that you're determined to be a dentist. Tulungan nyo din ang parents nyo sa pag iisip at kapain ang parents pagdating sa gastos. Palakasin nyo din ang loob nila at unawain nyo sila pag hindi nila nabibigay ang mga gusto nyo kase pinaprioritize nila ang studies nyo. :)

I am writing all of these now kase nasestress ako. Natatakot ako. I have fears when it comes to my course. Siguro dahil kaninang umaga tinawagan ko yung perio clinical px ko pero yun nga ganon ang nangyari tapos napepressure ako kase ang daming requirements ngayong clinic 3 (nakita ko na naman ang tally sheet haha), tapos binigay pa kanina ang dalwang napaka kapal na libro ng HD at OSS and lastly nagcheck na naman ako ng schedule at nakita kong ang unti na nga ng clinic time (tapos puro pa clinic interruptions dahil ng foundation week at pistakasan week) tapos umaapaw ang requirements. Jusko! But above anything else, I feel blessed that I am raised and born with a mom who has a positive mind set. Nakakahawa sya! Ibang level talaga. Sometimes I can’t help but over think especially if I feel like what I’m doing is close to failing. I’ve also reached that point wherein I feel like Dentistry is not really for me. Pero my mama always comes to the rescue and sya talaga ang nakakapagpa bago ng mood ko. She's one of a kind! After every breakdown I come to think and realize how lucky I am to be experiencing all of these. It only means I’m close to where I want to be and that is to become a doctor in the very near future.

To all of you who have read this, I hope you’ll respect and love your dentists. They’ve come a lot of struggles before they reach this point in their profession. I hope you respect us, your studentists, as well. I hope you appreciate all our efforts in providing the best service that we can give. Yes, we’re still students and we’re still in the process of learning so please don’t expect too much from us. I hope you still say “thank you” for the free service that we give. And to all the extendees that wasn’t able to graduate on time, I know you did your best to run after all the requirements. (Naniniwala akong 7 years talaga ang Dentistry and not 6 years! Haha) I know you had several breakdowns too and I know you’re over it but I wish you all the luck and hope you all the best this year. :) I salute all of us, and all in this profession. I’m a proud Dentist in the future. :)

PS. Hindi naman talaga related yung pictures sa post ko. Naghanap lang talaga ako ng pwedeng paglabasan ng stress. Haha

xoxo,

Hey guys! How are you all doing? We’re currently on a long weekend because our Saturday clinic had been declared as a rest day after our department’s accreditation plus it’s National Hero’s Day this coming Monday. I was given a couple of days to destress and just relax in our house, watch netflix (Have you seen To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before?) and my favorite youtube vloggers. Speaking of relaxing, I’m all in to comfortable clothes and huggable pillows. Who doesn’t like that?

I recently found a website which caters one of my favorite comfy wear, silk. FreedomSilk was made to give their clients and customers the comfort they wanted. They’re a company who manufactures and sells different kind of silk fabric including silk clothes like silk robes and silk camisole set. One of my favorite from their wide selection of categories is their silk pajamas. A pair of silk pajamas is the perfect ootd I could recommend you for a perfect and relaxing day at home.

I have selected a few set of my favorites to give you an idea of what to expect in their website.

First is this royal blue robe. This is the first thing that caught my attention. I love the color and glossy feels of this robe. Don’t you think it’s super classy?

Second are these 2 pairs of camisole set. I chose the colors royal blue (again) and my favorite color, pink. :) I think it’s more convenient and comfy sometimes to wear shorts than pants.

Third is this pair of PJs. I’m a big fan of PJs. These 2 colors, white and pink are also two of my top picks.

There you go! I hope you consider these when you place an order to their site. :) Visit their site for more choices!

xoxo,

There are a lot of restaurants opening in and around Batangas. Batanguenos are really up to try almost anything and everything they see new and good in social media. Paulo and I were two guilty people!! There's this restaurant named "Estasyon" that opened last July along Pastor Road across Ponte Fino Residences. I've been seeing it every time I go to school from SM. The place is just small (I think they only have 5-6 tables with 4 chairs) but its simple exterior and interior attracted me and Pau. I was really hungry when Pau fetched me that day. He's asking me where I want to eat and I told him I want to try the foods in Estasyon. We have no idea what this restaurant offers but we know it's something different. I don't really know what this restaurant caters but it's mostly Filipino foods with a twist!

Here's what we ended up ordering :) We were surprised to see a really cute presentation and plating for a small restaurant like this. They really do know how to satisfy their customers through small details like this one :)

Bongsilog (Php 130) Of course, this is Paulo's order! Garlic rice + Sunny side up egg + well, BACOOOON!!! He's in to Tapa at first but I told him that he's always eating beef meat so might as well change his order. He ended up with pork. I wasn't able to force him to eat something different for him like fish and veggies. Anyway, he said that their Bongsilog tasted good. He's going to order their tapa the next time we eat there.

Pancit Rafa (Php 170) I was curious on how this one tasted when I saw it in the menu. I'm not into fried noodles. Never. I was telling Pau that I want to try it but at the back of my mind I might just waste my money. He said that we should order it because it will bother me at the end of the day if I will not be able to try it and instead buy another one that I don't really like. Haha! He really knows me well. ** Same scenario with the Maybelline Super stay matte lipstick!! HAHA I was really in to the Amazonian shade but I fear that I might not be able to use it in my everyday look so I ended up buying the safer shades that I didn't actually liked first like the Seductress and the Vice lipsticks and lip tints. Because I was really bothered that I don't have the Amazonian I still bought it 2 weeks after. I ended up having more lip products than what was expected. Tinawanan na lang nya ako. Sa sobrang changes ko daw lalo ng dumami yung products na meron ako instead of yung gusto ko agad. Maybe I should show you my lip and eye products haul in my next posts. ** Going back to my review, this Pancit Rafa doesn't really satisfied my taste buds. It's my first time to eat crispy noodles in beer sauce and I don't think I would try the same thing again. The only thing that I enjoyed eating were the livers! I really love chicken and pork livers. :)

Adobo Chicken Tortilla (Php 115) This is my order! I wasn't really expecting that it looks like this when it was served. Maybe I didn't read the description of the foods haha. I highly recommend this one if you happen to visit Estasyon. It's a combination of chicken adobo, lettuce, tomatoes, onion, turmeric rice with their house cilantro tortilla. Ang sarap lang :) Pau even enjoyed it kahit hinalo-halo ko ang gulay haha The plating is well presented as well. Lakas makapang instagram! :)

Paulo and I will definitely go back and try their other dishes. I'd love to try their Hipon Marinara Pasta the next time I go there.

Aside from the foods and restaurants in my monthly favorites, I found this website which caters a lot of online cards and stationary. Since I was a child and up to now I've been collecting greeting cards, thank you cards, stationary and journals that has really cute designs and calligraphy. I love writing on it and sending it to my close friends or just keep it to myself.

I'm lucky enough to be given the chance to try Paperless post. It's an online site wherein you can produce your own cards and send it online to your friends and love ones. You can choose your own layout and design and after customize it. You can make there invitations, flyers, cards, and announcements. I decided to customize a thank you card into a business card and a stationary card with my name on it. :) Thank you Paperless post for the opportunity! I can finally send my friends online cards and invitations in just one click! :)

xoxo,

I'm starting to love this whole food blogging thing and here's my second official entry with the two "highly recommended" experts when in comes to food tasting and blogging. Do you have any guesses already? :P Before this semester starts, Bonchie and I went to Manila for our summer gala "daw". We were suppose to go to National Museum of Natural History but it turned out to be a day of mall hopping, shopping and food trips! Hindi na natuloy ang National Museum ko :( Samahan nyo 'ko! Going back to the story, the first thing that we did when we arrived in Manila is to EAT! :) We were in Mandaluyong during that time so I thought of calling Paulo to join us. The three of us were hungry during that time and would want to eat a lot but the problem is we only have a tight budget to spend to fill and satisfy our stomachs. (Do you think it's even possible in restaurants???). Lo and behold my Booky app saved the day! I learned this app from another blogger and was so eager to try it if it really works. We searched for a restaurant that covers the booky app and we ended up choosing "Mesa".

Mesa is a fine dining restaurant which showcases a lot of Filipino and Asian dishes. It's more of giving an authentic Filipino flavor with a little modern twist in the presentation. I was surprised to be served with a reclining glass of water. What a cute concept! Their branch in Robinsons Galleria has a good ambience (although there's a little problem with the leaking water from the aircon) and a family style presentation. A lot of people were actually eating during that day but the good thing is that we were reserved using my Booky app :)

Baked Scallops in Garlic Butter (Php 240)- Baked scallops are my personal favorite! Every time we're going to dine in restaurants, if it's not the fish fillet, baked scallops are always the first thing that I look for in the menu. Mesa's baked scallops didn't exceeded my expectations. I mean, it tasted good but it didn't reached my standard that will make me come back for it. I think it's because I prefer cheesy baked scallops than the garlic butter compound that they have. But still, if you love scallops like I do, maybe you should give this one a try when you dine in the restaurant. 12 scallops for Php 240 is not bad at all. :)

Grilled Liempo Mesa Way (Php 230)- This was Paulo's order. He always orders Liempo every time we eat in restaurants and I knew that even before he saw the menu his order would be the restaurant's liempo. HAHA! :P Mesa's grilled liempo tasted good. The waiter said that the serving is good for 2-3 persons but it looked like it's just for one to the point that Paulo can finish it in one seating. Haha :(

Pork Sisig Rice (Php195)- This is Paulo's choice again. I told him that we should've not bought a sisig rice and instead just a plain rice because there's already a grilled liempo which is another pork in our order. But of course, the two big guys insisted to order and so I lose. :( Aside from the sisig rice which was really tasty that even if there's no main course can suffice our hunger already, we still ordered 3 plated plain rice because we wanted to have our second round. Haha!

Kare-Kare Crispy Short Ribs (Php 380)- This is Von's choice. This was actually our favorite among all the foods that we ordered. The peanut sauce is really tasty. Masarap sya! I recommend you to try this if you happen to dine in the place. Value for money rating is 5/5! Haha! Feel na feel na ang pagiging food blogger but if you're going to ask the two guys who I'm with, I'm sure they'll tell you the same thing. :)

The restaurant doesn't have any service charge that's why there's no hidden charges during the bill out. Our original bill was Php 1,180 but because we have the Booky app, we only got to pay Php 590 (50% discount!!!) for all the foods that we ate! :) I'm not really promoting this app but if you want to eat more without spending too much I recommend you to download Booky app on your phones! :)

xoxo,

Outfit. Kicking the last few days of my vacation with this cute romper from Zaful. It's still summer anyway and I still have an excuse to wear a romper in pastel yellow. This is one of the items that I scored during my last order in Zaful. Not only did I got it because it's a romper but because I loved its style and design. Tube romper made it easier for me to dress up and dress down the outfit plus it's very convenient when I'm going to go to the comfort room. I don't think this romper is too short but it's a little bit of see through on the bottoms. Anyway, you can get this same romper by clicking this or head through their site for more fashion finds. Here's a coupon code of 12% which you can use upon check out- code:ZFNancy2

Bowtie Off shoulder romper- $18.49

Heyyyy guys! My summer vacation is about to end in just a few days (Pasukan na sa Monday!!!) and to be honest, I am excited at some point because I feel like there are a lot of things to look forward to this semester. New faces around the building (Hi freshmen!!), new professors (daw??), new rules in the clinic (huhu), new subjects and more. Guys, SENIOR CLINICIAN NA AKO!!! This is so far my biggest achievement as a Dentistry student and I couldn't be happier because I'm entering my 6th year full of high hopes and positivity. I'm excited to see you soon, my dear patients! :)