Ms. Do-It-Herself

While I was busy strolling around SM Department Store for my last-minute shopping, I came across an attractive display of wall decorations at a nearby cash register. As I intently browsed every sort of decorative items, one eye-catching design had captured my attention – a ceramic wall hanging décor having a cool sign “Ms. Fix It” at the top. And when I looked at those words etched below the sign, I was just so amused reading the tag lines and the entire job list! Whew! This wall décor seemed to speak the kind of lifestyle I have, hahaha! Nalingaw jud ko! Call me an impulsive buyer, but I instantly grabbed the item and added it on my shopping basket.

Ms. Fix It? Ehh.. why not? Being an independent woman that I am, I’ve done quite a number of minor and major fixing along the way… well, in my flat I mean.. hehe! Of the twelve house jobs on the list (see photo), I’ve so far done seven of them – carpentry, painting, decorating, cleaning, cooking, mending and shopping. Major home repair, renovation, plumbing and electrical jobs were done by the professionals of course. Taxi service? I’m just good at dialing the call-a-taxi hotline, haha!

Carpentry. When I got this flat four years ago, one of the first things I bought were the hardware tools for some minor carpentry jobs (hammer, nails, screw drivers, pliers, hooks, knobs, etc.). I’ve done quite a number of carpentry jobs at my flat then. Mending my dining table, refurbishing my bedroom closet, fixing my kitchen cabinet (had to borrow that noisy electric drill for this job hehe!), repairing worn out locks at my door, assembling racks and shelf, and installing window blinds (I had to tiptoe all the time and had to fully stretch my arms upward while doing the entire blinds assembly 10 feet above as I didn’t have a carpenter’s ladder, I was only using a chair for elevation, hehe!). I suddenly remember that song way back in grade school “I drive the nails with one, two, three! I saw away the lumber…” Now, I’m doing all those stuff too! Lingaw sab diay mag karpentero!

Painting. Because my flat isn’t that big enough, painting job was never a burden. While it was my father who did this kind of work back in my hometown, I’m now doing everything independently at my flat. Had simply bought a paint brush, a paint basin, a roller, a can of latex paint (for cement) and enamel (for wood), and a thinner. Within just a few hours of such thorough work, ayan.. amoy pintura na ang bahay ko, heheh! Bitaw, mas hamugaway na tan-awon akong palibot.

Decorating. Ahh.. this is one thing I loved the most. Diri mogawas akong pagka-kikay, hehehe! Being so particular with the house motif, I really made sure everything in my flat looked so color coordinated. From the curtains I put on (even made them myself using my colleague’s sewing machine, hehe!), the wall frames, the doormat, the table cloth, the beddings, the cushions, (even the plastic trash can, whew!) and all other house adornments, there’s a color scheme to create a cool ambiance of my place. In my bedroom, I had this glow-in-the-dark constellation figures attached to my ceiling to make me feel like I’m stargazing everytime I go to bed (seems like a kid's bedroom, hehe!). I have a few collections of angel figurines too. And the latest ceramic décor I have? What else but this “Ms. Fix It” stuff!

Cleaning. Since I live alone in my flat (as in no buddy, no assistant), the cleaning job is all mine, hahaha! From mopping the floor, washing the dishes, organizing the clutters, dusting racks and shelf, cleaning the toilet, doing the laundry (etcetera, etcetera)… whew! I had everything under my hands! Nevertheless, I’ve become so accustomed on this that I hardly noticed I’m doing a one-man show! Hahaha!

Cooking. I must admit I never really cook. My mom does the cooking job at home. But I started to learn to cook when I had to live quite a distance from home, the time when I entered college and live the boarding house lifestyle. Hala, luto jud para maka-save, hehe! When the time came that I had to set my own career path after graduation and had to live on my own, I became an instant cook-in-the-making (really!). And as time went by, I’ve learned to love cooking indeed! My friends and colleagues would at times visit my place just to enjoy my home-cooked goodies. Yum.. yum!

Shopping. There goes the grocery list, naka magnet sa refrigerator. And who’s going to do the shopping? Well, ako gihapon, hahaha! As what I’ve said earlier, it’s a one-man show! One thing I love about doing groceries is that I'm always kept posted with the prices of the basic commodities, unlike before that I was not so keen about prices (kay dili man ako ang ga-grocery, whew!). While it’s a fact that thriftiness is my nature, I do also splurge myself for a shopping-spree! But here’s the catch - I don’t go to boutiques for they have the tendency to overprice their items. I go instead to department stores where I can choose a wide array of clothing and accessories at a much lesser price. And my best venue for shopping? The ukay-ukay sale at some selected stalls in the malls. I’m just so practical when it comes to shopping. I’m not so keen about signature clothes and all other branded stuffs. Just check my closet and you’ll hardly see any branded apparels and accessories on it. Even my house furnishings, almost of all them I bought at a super low price, wahoo! I have to admit what my friends say that I’m a kuripot shopper heheh! But I guess I have a more appropriate word for that – it’s “wise spending.”

“No job too big. No problem too small.” This was the wall décor tagline that had me nod in approval. Indeed there’s no job too big and no problem too small for a woman who exudes ingenuity and independence. And it's quite a fulfillment on my part knowing that in one way or another, I have become one such kind of woman. Way to go, Ms. Do-It-Herself!