Because i spent too much on clothes last month, i declared a moratorium on shopping for at least two weeks.  when i received my pay two week ago, i had to muster an enormous amount of self-control because there were so many things i wanted to buy.  it wasn't too difficult to stop myself though, because i only wanted those things, i didn't really need them.

what i couldn't resist though, is books.

on that payday, two weeks ago, after window-shopping around Gateway Mall  with my colleague and new friend Vanette, i dragged boyf up to the previously-owned-books section of National Bookstore.  they have a vast collection of POBs from all genres imaginable. i took my time picking out books and had a very hard time deciding on the final two. in the end, i ended up buying three books - at bargain prices of course.

three books out of two-weeks salary isn't so much as a splurge. and as boyf pointed out, it's not even 10% of what i received, and i wasn't planning on buying anything else for this period. unlike my previous shopping spree where i blew more than half of my paycheck (which i swear never to do again!).

it took me over a week to read through the first book: Lisa Armstrong's Front Row. A few years back, i wouldn't have given this book a second look simply because it revolved on the world of fashion, something i didn't take too much interest in. but i truly enjoyed this book because it provided me with a glimpse of the world that models and fashion editors of the west live in. also, since i've taken on a broad perspective about life in general, reading the book has given me insights into how people who are different from me, lead their lives.

 what was amazing about this book is that although it is apparently about the fashion world, the themes it takes on transcends across lifestyles. and i swear i could identify with some scenarios. i am not good at doing book reviews, and no matter how i try to make the book sound interesting without actually retelling the story, i can't.

it is a love story, essentially, because it tells the story of two people who found each other, fell in love, fell apart, and found their way back home. it is not about holding on because the characters did not grab on to an illusion that things will be patched up, and yet they did. it reinforces my belief that when two people are meant for each other, they will always find their way back in each other's arms. that sometimes, the mind and the body gets tired, and although one thinks the heart has given up too, it hasn't. and sometimes, we find that we bask in another's attention, think even that we are falling in love, but then wake up one day realizing we were only longing for the one for which our heart beats.

but it isn't a love story in a traditional sense, for it does not attempt to let the readers feel the heartache, nor does it focus on the fact that the couple makes up in the end. it is as much a story about love as it is about the goodness in people. it is about deciding to do good, no matter how tainted the world may be. it is about Cassie, the person behind one of the world's leading model agencies, who strives hard to keep her girls clean and tries to be a mother or an elder sister to her talents. she does good by them, but that does not exempt her from getting dragged into a controversy. she is proof that when you try to do good, and you actually do good, people will throw mud at you. but no matter how hard they try to drag you down, when you have a clear conscience and a pure heart, your head will always stay afloat.

it is about making decisions: how we hope to make the right ones but not always managing to; and how to realize when we've made a bad decision. the story revolves on the fact that there is always a choice. and ultimately, we are the one who make the decisions that make or break us.

ah, there is just so much that i learn from one story. even if sometimes that is not what an author intends his/her readers to gather from the material. i just feel that my mind is exercised when i read. and there are no trivial subject matters. sometimes, the most trivial of things, gives us the most impact, or incites us to deeper and more profound issues in life