<?xml version='1.0' encoding='UTF-8'?><?xml-stylesheet href="http://www.blogger.com/styles/atom.css" type="text/css"?><feed xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom' xmlns:openSearch='http://a9.com/-/spec/opensearchrss/1.0/' xmlns:georss='http://www.georss.org/georss'><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2360294585985732532</id><updated>2009-10-17T20:51:56.420-06:00</updated><title type='text'>moments...</title><subtitle type='html'>it's the journey undertaken, not the destination.</subtitle><link rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#feed' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://maria-q.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/2360294585985732532/posts/default'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://maria-q.blogspot.com/'/><link rel='hub' href='http://pubsubhubbub.appspot.com/'/><author><name>bing2x</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/00034998038940854919</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email></author><generator version='7.00' uri='http://www.blogger.com'>Blogger</generator><openSearch:totalResults>4</openSearch:totalResults><openSearch:startIndex>1</openSearch:startIndex><openSearch:itemsPerPage>25</openSearch:itemsPerPage><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2360294585985732532.post-3053623621480305864</id><published>2007-05-05T12:28:00.000-06:00</published><updated>2008-12-10T10:23:15.855-06:00</updated><title type='text'>life is a quest, love is a quarrel</title><content type='html'>&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_nnS2GdiYdhs/RjzO3emMIvI/AAAAAAAAAAs/aRM-M-uEnt4/s1600-h/heart.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_nnS2GdiYdhs/RjzO3emMIvI/AAAAAAAAAAs/aRM-M-uEnt4/s200/heart.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5061147533758964466" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;i wanna be loved. i wanna feel important. i wanna be seduced and adored and wanted. i wanna be romanced. i wanna be tickled. what more can a woman ask?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/2360294585985732532-3053623621480305864?l=maria-q.blogspot.com'/&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://maria-q.blogspot.com/feeds/3053623621480305864/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=2360294585985732532&amp;postID=3053623621480305864' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/2360294585985732532/posts/default/3053623621480305864'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/2360294585985732532/posts/default/3053623621480305864'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://maria-q.blogspot.com/2007/05/life-is-quest-love-is-quarrel.html' title='life is a quest, love is a quarrel'/><author><name>bing2x</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/00034998038940854919</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='08276225178790399794'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media='http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/' url='http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_nnS2GdiYdhs/RjzO3emMIvI/AAAAAAAAAAs/aRM-M-uEnt4/s72-c/heart.jpg' height='72' width='72'/><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2360294585985732532.post-2327622519756165693</id><published>2007-04-11T23:25:00.000-06:00</published><updated>2008-12-10T10:23:16.083-06:00</updated><title type='text'>a slice of heaven</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_nnS2GdiYdhs/Rh3DNxhjS2I/AAAAAAAAAAk/8Jj8HtOEs4A/s1600-h/Nokia+Pictures+036.jpg"&gt;&lt;img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5052408998379342690" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_nnS2GdiYdhs/Rh3DNxhjS2I/AAAAAAAAAAk/8Jj8HtOEs4A/s200/Nokia+Pictures+036.jpg" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt; &lt;p&gt;we got back from our spring break trip in punta cana, dominican republic recently and i still am missing the place. john and i had &lt;em&gt;tons&lt;/em&gt; of fun... and we cannot wait to go back (maybe this time we will stay for a week). the people in the resort that accommodated us throughout our vacation were very friendly and helpful. they always had smiles on their faces. it was definitely a memorable place and the experiences we had there cannot be summarized and truncated. john and i have pictures to treasure and remember. &lt;p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;the resort that we stayed at, Bavaro Caribe Princess, was very clean and spectacular. it had three pools, five restaurants and an entertaining nightly entertainment. we stayed there all-inclusive-ly (that even a word?) so we took advantage of the meals and drinks (alcoholic and non) and had a grand ol' time like we had both just turned 21! &lt;p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;the beach was just like i'd seen on the travel book. it was blue and clean and inviting. john and i especially loved the sound of the waves at night. we strolled there after dinner, sat on the lounge chairs and covered ourselves in blanket and we just listened. i could've fallen asleep right there and then.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;the trip was certainly unforgettable. can't wait to go back!&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/2360294585985732532-2327622519756165693?l=maria-q.blogspot.com'/&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://maria-q.blogspot.com/feeds/2327622519756165693/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=2360294585985732532&amp;postID=2327622519756165693' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/2360294585985732532/posts/default/2327622519756165693'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/2360294585985732532/posts/default/2327622519756165693'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://maria-q.blogspot.com/2007/04/slice-of-heaven.html' title='a slice of heaven'/><author><name>bing2x</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/00034998038940854919</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='08276225178790399794'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media='http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/' url='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_nnS2GdiYdhs/Rh3DNxhjS2I/AAAAAAAAAAk/8Jj8HtOEs4A/s72-c/Nokia+Pictures+036.jpg' height='72' width='72'/><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2360294585985732532.post-2288376618739287993</id><published>2007-03-27T09:23:00.000-06:00</published><updated>2008-12-10T10:23:16.378-06:00</updated><title type='text'>ignorance is a bliss</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_nnS2GdiYdhs/Rgk-u0uwKGI/AAAAAAAAAAc/kk3rG-5ZLEA/s1600-h/Diversity--C10285190.jpeg"&gt;&lt;img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5046633831594993762" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_nnS2GdiYdhs/Rgk-u0uwKGI/AAAAAAAAAAc/kk3rG-5ZLEA/s200/Diversity--C10285190.jpeg" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;or is it i wonder? my boyfriend pointed out the other day that i am acutely aware of my race, or suffice to say that i am &lt;em&gt;racially-conscious&lt;/em&gt;, which i am not going to deny. he ended the comment by saying he wasn't insinuating i'm a racist. i don't think i am. it's just that whenever he and i go inside an establishment and i notice that i am one of the three people there out of, say, 50 that is of color i quickly mention the fact without any maliciousness behind it. i am a minority, and i'm not pointing out the obvious to solicit any pity or otherwise indifference. i am just being observant.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;two weeks ago, there was a booth right outside the door of my class that read "diversity convention." three students were manning this little nook. as i passed by, the girl stopped me and asked if i wanted to sign up for it. "i'm all for diversity," i thought. so why not? but even before i could get up-close to this little compartment of theirs, the girl proceeded to explain that the convention is giving out free lunch and that she's sure they will be serving &lt;strong&gt;rice! &lt;/strong&gt;I KNOW! i just about nun-chucked her with my bag! but recognizing i wasn't in the philippines anymore, i politely said "no, thanks" and walked away. i narrated the story to john as soon as i was outside the edifice. he calmed me down by explaining to me that there are people out there that are "naive" and are not meaning to hurt anyone by their ignorant comments. i shouldn't be mad at them, but to empathize.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;i have been called a chinese (by a guy who wanted to teach me how to play pool), a japanese (by a new work employee) and a korean (by someone who is now a good friend of mine). people don't have to be specific about a person's ethnicity. i would have been more content if i was referred to as "asian." if you don't know what kind of "asian" a person is, leaving it as is is a safe bet.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/2360294585985732532-2288376618739287993?l=maria-q.blogspot.com'/&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://maria-q.blogspot.com/feeds/2288376618739287993/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=2360294585985732532&amp;postID=2288376618739287993' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/2360294585985732532/posts/default/2288376618739287993'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/2360294585985732532/posts/default/2288376618739287993'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://maria-q.blogspot.com/2007/03/ignorance-is-bliss.html' title='ignorance is a bliss'/><author><name>bing2x</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/00034998038940854919</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='08276225178790399794'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media='http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/' url='http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_nnS2GdiYdhs/Rgk-u0uwKGI/AAAAAAAAAAc/kk3rG-5ZLEA/s72-c/Diversity--C10285190.jpeg' height='72' width='72'/><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2360294585985732532.post-3656955605043895021</id><published>2007-03-25T22:47:00.000-06:00</published><updated>2008-12-10T10:23:16.392-06:00</updated><title type='text'>fresh as a daisy</title><content type='html'>&lt;a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_nnS2GdiYdhs/Rgdcb63LoHI/AAAAAAAAAAU/44K6vdiXcNw/s1600-h/3_tulips.jpg"&gt;&lt;img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5046103542218858610" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_nnS2GdiYdhs/Rgdcb63LoHI/AAAAAAAAAAU/44K6vdiXcNw/s200/3_tulips.jpg" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div&gt;i love spring. it induces this feeling of serenity and freshness... as if a new beginning is imminent. driving along the road, passing through newly bloomed cherry-blossom trees, gold daffodils and an array of colorful tulips on the sidewalk, the evidence of this breath-taking season is here!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;with spring comes changes, too. my winter clothes had gone to hibernation and a thorough closet-cleaning had been put into place and was enforced. i, myself, am shocked (and rightfully so!) at how much clothes i have accumulated this past year. it took me a good 4 hours to shape up my wardrobe abode... and frankly it was quite liberating given the fact that i was dreading this daunting task ever since spring equinox ambled in with great acceptance from, i'm sure, everybody.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;not sounding so cliche and befall the stereotype of a college student ready to get rowdy, i am looking forward to spring break. my boyfriend and i are of course, veering away from the banal and common spring break destinations. we are just looking for a little r&amp;amp;r in the dominican republic. i couldn't think of a better person to be deserving of this trip than my boyfriend john. he has been through a lot this past year and has overcome life's many obstacles amazingly and with great integrity.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;spring is definitely one of God's infinitely fascinating creations. with it exudes the sense of foreboding new chances and the ability to follow through with the things we had been reluctant to pursue and have set aside. i like spring.&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/2360294585985732532-3656955605043895021?l=maria-q.blogspot.com'/&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://maria-q.blogspot.com/feeds/3656955605043895021/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=2360294585985732532&amp;postID=3656955605043895021' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/2360294585985732532/posts/default/3656955605043895021'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/2360294585985732532/posts/default/3656955605043895021'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://maria-q.blogspot.com/2007/03/fresh-as-daisy.html' title='fresh as a daisy'/><author><name>bing2x</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/00034998038940854919</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='08276225178790399794'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media='http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/' url='http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_nnS2GdiYdhs/Rgdcb63LoHI/AAAAAAAAAAU/44K6vdiXcNw/s72-c/3_tulips.jpg' height='72' width='72'/><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry></feed>