Post-birthday post: on shoes, cookies and bags

What I'm hoping is the final thesis submission for this semester is done and finished (whew!) and I have overcome the very spontaneous pre-deliberations with nothing close to flying colors. But I would like to say it went well, and I'm only hoping I do 100483288238138x better next semester! I'm recharged from a good twelve-hour sleep last night, and I can finally set aside a few minutes for blogging (the purpose of which is to plug awesome online stores) before I go on to study for two more exams tomorrow. *cheers*

My birthday has come and gone, quietly and happily. This year I had contemplated on asking for an iPod (my first generation nano had died earlier this year; if it turned on, its battery drained completely at one swirl around the circular navigation thing that the classic iPods had). That eventually went down the drain, because I didn't want my parents spending too much on me after getting me a better replacement cellphone earlier this year for the one I lost last December. 

So I asked for shoes. YAAAAAAAY. 

These cute flats came from Muji, which I plan to use for everyday activities. They're very comfortable, and I had the chance to try them in the rain yesterday; solid fit and durable against water, YAY! :D

These cute aquamarine ones, on the other hand, I ordered from Ziggy and Zooey on Facebook. They've got about ten or twelve colors for this style, and while I can't use them on a rainy day, they're an awesome fit for a ton of outfits. WOOOOOOOT. The sellers were also very nice and accommodating; I was eight pesos short of the total payment (memory fail!), but they didn't mind. :) So awesome.

My friend Carissa came by on Sunday to drop off the red velvet cupcakes ordered by my roommate (a note to the reader: she makes awesome cupcakes and brazo de mercedes, so should you want to order a certain baked item, feel free to contact me :D), and to my surprise, she brought me cookies for my birthday gift. YAAAAAY.

She kept them in this cute paper bag, with a birthday note that reminded me that I've been friends with her since the age of fourteen. FOURTEEN! We're almost near a decade of friendship, Caddy. :)

Finally, this bag here came from one of my favorite bag shops online, Izzo Shop. Last summer I finally bought a camera bag for Duccio, and for my birthday, Joseph bought this pretty laptop tote. It might come off as a bit too simple for others' tastes, but I suppose simplicity and reliability are the reasons why the Longchamp bags are so popular today - hence my soft spot for this bag from Izzo. Hee. :> 

There's a pretty print in the interiors of the bag, somewhat reminiscent of A.A. Milne's Winnie the Pooh illustrations, and I love that should the time come, I can fit in my laptop into this bag. Heeee. 

Happy happy. And now, off to work.