This is why..

I am only giving up beef for Lent and not pork.

AnthonyBourdain just said it...that the lechon he ate in Cebu was the best pig EVER! If you are a regular viewer of his show NoReservations, it is a known fact how much he loves pig and beer. So for him to declare that in his show is quite the feat. In fact, he just ranked the Philippines pig as #1 in his hierarchy of pork.

And speaking of pig? It can now be said that of all the whole roasted pigs I've had all over the world, the slow roasted lechon I had on Cebu was the best. This puts the standings in the Hierarchy of Pork as follows:

#1. Philippines

#2. Bali

#3. Puerto Rico

I still have 35 minutes to go before "No Reservations-Philippines" airs but no way am I changing the channel. I cannot wait to see his take on his trip there. This episode was a long time coming and I am glad he went. Not only did he go but he has taken a great interest in it and hopefully more people will do the same. Filipinos know that our cuisine is so much more than just the balut. Now because of his show, AnthonyBourdain has proven that this indeed is true.

Power struggle anyone?

With the Lunar New Year fast approaching expect to read a lot about Chinese Horoscope and Feng Shui with regard to the new year that is going to greet us - the Year of the Ox. I admit, I read my Chinese Horoscope (Dragon) as well as the other horoscope (Aries). I really don't take it seriously but I wont lose anything if I keep it in mind. Its a guide or a warning if you want to see it that way but not a map of what my life will really be like in this new year. I am still waiting for a more comprehensive reading for people born in the Year of the Dragon. However, there is already a snippet in the BusinessMirror about it.

"Meanwhile, those born under the Year of the Dragon are considered both lucky and unlucky this year. “While it has lucky stars, it is in conflict with the Ox, thus, this luck is canceled."

Looks like there is going to be a power struggle looming between the Dragon and the Ox. I wonder how this can be contradicted. My friend Apryll told me that her feng-shui friend said that the color red isn't advised for this year for obvious reasons - it will anger the Ox. But I told her that I guess its my shield against the Ox or well my weapon to piss it even more. LOL I guess I will just wear more earth colors this year but accent it with either a pair of red shoes or a red bag.

In agreement

Even my horoscope agrees with me. YAY!!

Here is your horoscope
for Wednesday, December 31:

You can't help but think about the future today -- the past is under control and with the big calendar change on the way, you can make some bold progress toward tackling something big for the year!

Leaving Yesterday

I was contemplating on writing a "year in review" post putting a title of "The Good, The Bad & The Ugly". I already knew it was going to be majority a downer looking back at the year that I have had. 2008 was just a bust. There was a weekend in April that I experienced both a highest of high and a lowest of low followed by sometime in September. It sucked big time that I couldn't wait for this year to be over. I couldn't wait for the clock to strike at midnight so I can finally put 2008 behind me, close that chapter. Start 2009 with a clean slate.

However, I realized as I was writing "The Good" that I didn't want my last posts for the year 2008 to be downers or depressing despite it being such. Instead of rehashing everything that was bad for me this year, bringing me back to those times I am going to look at it as a "cup half-full" rather than "half-empty". I am glad I started with the things that made me happy..the good things for this year rather than with the bad. I realized that sure 2008 wasn't the best but there are still so many things that I am thankful for this year. Confining myself into thinking about the bad ones is for me devaluing the good things. So, I am not going to talk about the bad things anymore. When the clock strikes at midnight on December 31, I will just put the bad things behind me, leave it to yesterday but bring along the good ones, just the good ones and let those grow and flourish come 2009.

Oh a bad one worth mentioning though is Firefox 3.0.5 or whatever it is is not working for me. I want my 2.0 back.

On that note, I remember this song by Keno back in the 80's aptly titled "Leaving Yesterday Behind" that pretty much sums up my attitude towards 2008 from now on.

Since you left me,
I never really tried
To put my life to where it should belong
And I've always let the past gone by

'm realizing that it could be wrong
But now I fin'lly knew
I had to let it go
To make way for a brighter tomorrow

So now I'm leavin' yesterday behind
And fin'lly I've made up my mind
So let the mem'ries stay away
And think about today
I'm leavin' yesterday behind '
Cause now I'll try to live my life once more
The way I did before

Since I know that I never will forget
The memories that made my yesterday
I will try not to let it interfere
The choices I will make along the way

Refrain:
'Cause I'm not livin' in a world of fantasy
I'm here now in the world of reality

Chorus:
So now I'm leavin' yesterday behind
And fin'lly I've made up my mind
So let the mem'ries stay away
And think about today I'm leavin' yesterday behind
'Cause now I'll try to live my life once more
The way I did before

Happy New Year!!!

The irony of all ironies

US anti-kidnapping expert kidnapped in Mexico

I know that this is no laughing matter but I couldn't help but laugh when I read about it. Talk about the mother of all ironies. If that wasn't enough, his purpose of being in Mexico was to give advice on abductions for ransom. But there is a serious matter that needs to be pointed out here, if he wasn't safe from kidnappers what more us, ordinary, common folks. It makes you think and couldn't help but be fearful.

Keep it simple

Woman swept to death during proposal at a rock in Oregon.

A couple..a proposal...a bride-to-be literally swept off her feet

When I first read about it I thought it was an urban legend or a hoax. It was just so bizarre to be true but it is. Its one of those stories that takes time to really digest and understand but it happened. Its just so tragic that what was supposed to be a romantic and happy event turned to be something so tragic.

It really just shows you how unpredictable life is and how short it can be as well. I guess we just really should make the most of whatever time we have.

.....

To receive real love, you must have...

An open heart to let it in...

An open soul to accept that love

A mind to bask in the fantasy but look at the reality

and time to find, nurture, sustain and maintain that love.

Not Fr. Truc's exact words but almost when he delivered his homily on this Gospel. He likened relationships to these words in the gospel.

"You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment. The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. .

Heaven!

I love desserts. No question about it. But I am not the "I-have-to have-dessert-always" type. I am not going to force myself to eat dessert if there is just no space for me to do so after a meal. But, I would take it to go if I can. I love cakes, pies, ice cream, tarts, anything. But, I can rather be picky with what kinds of dessert I eat. I will only eat leche flan made by our family, well because its the best there is - taste wise, texture wise, visually and palate wise. I am not too fond of anything chocolate except if its my cousins' or my sister's chocolate cake. I don't like too thick cheesecake or too thick slices of cake, pie or anything. For me the goodness of a dessert is not measured by how humongous it is. The smallest serving can have the bigger impact to me than a visually towering one. It just boils down to taste and well how pretty it looks.

There have been times that I have ogled over display windows looking at oh so pretty cakes and other desserts. There is just something in visually appealing food as it should be since we are enticed first by what we see and it is validated by how it tastes, its texture, the flavors. There have been times that the pretty things didn't have the best taste at all. So it should be a symphony of a lot of elements but not overpowering or overwhelming.

More than eating desserts, I also enjoy making them. I haven't been able to lately for lack of time but I do make desserts when time permits and when inspiration strikes. Making desserts was my responsibility when we would have parties. I have always enjoyed baking even when I was little. It helps that our bakery was just adjacent to our house thus easy access to ingredients. I remember making my parents a cake for their anniversary and got all the ingredients from the bakery. Well, their anniversary is in May which falls on summer vacation thus no allowance. But its been awhile since I last baked.

I do feel the pang to bake again once in awhile especially when I read blogs like this - No Special Effects. But between my sister and cousins we can be all "dessert-out" in our parties. Sometimes I think we have more dessert selections than entrees. I am sure it wouldn't hurt to have one more but maybe one day soon I will add my own contribution. For now, my eyes feast on food blogs that make desserts and I satisfy my palate by eating those made by my sister and cousins.

This takes the cake!

I have always had weird dreams

.....my friends and I in Grecian attire standing on an infinity pool, with pillars behind us looking at an orange sun that wont set.

..... me with someone walking around a park and in an instant two knife-wielding guys were running after us making the two if us run for our lives all around the park even jumping over fences.

.... me walking along a corridor when it suddenly became flooded and my red shoes being taken away by the current into a storm drain but I caught it in time.

But this morning I think I had a dream that takes the cake for being the most weird of the bunch.

It looked like I was in a corner table at some restaurant, wooden or bamboo was the material. The table had those plastic floral table covers I used to see in carinderias. Anyway, I was with 2 other women. One I know, the other one didn't look at all familiar to me. But what the heck we shared the table. It looked like we were drinking. Of all drinks, we were drinking gin and of all brands this is what we were drinking. We were drinking a lot but we didn't seem to get drunk. Then next thing I know I looked at my glass and the thing turned brown. Then someone told me to shake my glass and it will be clear again. So I did and it did turn clear. So now each time I take a sip, I shake it first so it will be clear. I did that a couple of times but then this time when I shook it and it became clear I saw a baby octopus and a stuffed toy catfish in the bottom of my glass. (See I told you its weird.) Then my companions said to go ahead and eat the octopus. Its like the worm at the bottom of the tequila bottle. There was no way I was going to eat the toy so I got a fork and was about to poke the octopus to eat it. Then all of a sudden I heard a sound from my right - one of my companions, the one I know was slumped over what looked like a cabinet. I tried waking her up but she was too drunk and she had passed out.

Then I woke up to the sound of rain. The first in California for the season.

This dream was just beyond weird. I don't drink gin, don't think I ever had and the brand...of all brands. The octopus? The little stuffed toy catfish, if I am not mistaken it was colored purple?

I wonder what its trying to tell me.

How cool is this?

My otherwise hoo-hum Friday morning got a sudden jolt upon reading on Our Awesome Planet that Anthony Bourdain...THE Anthony Bourdain of "Kitchen Confidential", "A Cook's Tour" and "No Reservations" is in the Philippines!! Woohoo!

I have always enjoyed his brand of hosting..straight forward, quirky, witty and at times laced with sarcasm that is so fresh. He goes into places that are not at all touristy but honest to goodness good food which is what its supposed to be. I watch his shows a lot even the re-runs. I have even influenced my other relatives to watch his show. While watching, we have always wondered "when is he going to the Philippines?" It seems like we were not the only ones. He said in his blog that "Of all the people who watch NO RESERVATIONS, it's been Filipinos who have been consistently among our biggest fans and most vocal about our having yet to film in their country." Well not only that when his show invited fans to send in their videos for the "FAN-atic Special" one of the finalist was Augusto Elefanio who invited Mr. Bourdain to take a trip to the Philippines and discover that our cuisine is more than just the "balut".

And now he is there. So far, it seems part of his itinerary have been Manila, Pampanga and Cebu. Those are the ones known so far. The rest is kept under wraps - too much under wraps that I don't think mainstream press are even aware that he is there which is a good thing. He strikes me as someone who really just want to keep a low profile and enjoy what he went there for which is the food and the culture. I don't know when this will air on The Travel Channel, reports have said January 2009. Which day between 1 and 31 is still to be determined. I will keep my eyes and ears peeled for this one. I am so excited to see which foods he sampled and what his take on them will be. So far, it seems he got a pretty good introduction. I read from Anton's blog that he enjoyed drinking San Mig Light (maybe a little too much too). It is a known fact how much he loves his beers. Cosmic because it is I think the only beer in this world that I can drink more than one. That and Newcastle.

Trust your friends

... to wear the same thing when you didn't discuss it.

... to lift your spirits up.

... to make you laugh when you need it the most. Or even when you don't but just because.

... to let you cry your eyes out when they actually want to slap-shock you to your senses.

... to listen to your rants no matter how pointless and petty and repetitive they may be.

... to keep you sane and also share your insanity.

... to keep you grounded and yet be the first to float your boat.

... to tell you like it is and yet also sugar-coat things when they need to be.

... to lend an ear to hear and a heart to listen. Or give you an earful but you know its coming from their heart.

... to lend you their smile when you cant seem to find your own.

... to understand you or at least pretend that they do because well they know its what you need.

... to respect you even if they don't agree with you.

... to give you a comforting hug when words are just not enough.

... to fill up your prospect pool

... to be there for you even when with the way you are acting they'd rather be somewhere else.

I know its not Friendship day but I am declaring my own holiday. It is MY Friendship Day!

"Shared sorrow is half-sorrow. Shared joy is double joy."

Thanks!

Here is your horoscope
for Monday, October 20:

You need to find an emotional outlet, but that won't be hard -- almost everyone else has the same idea! People are definitely looking for folks to speak with and listen to, so open up and enjoy the ride!

Boxing match

You have taken all the hits that you can take..but you are still standing.

You see the blows coming but feeling them is a different thing...but you are still standing.

Numb...but still standing.

Prof. Randy Pausch said that "brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we want something."

But what if brick walls are guised as metal walls - cold..hard..impermeable, multi-layered. No mallet, sledgehammer, electric drill, or even tractor can make it come down. I know even a metal wall has its Achilles heel, its weak point but what that weak point is, I do not know.

Question is...do you continue to fight when it seems you have no more strength left to do so or throw in the towel and walk away? Walk away scathed but still alive. Walk away with nothing but the experience and the lesson.

I wish...

Here is your horoscope
for Wednesday, October 15:

You need to check what's going on in your life against your value system. It might be time for you to make a few changes or walk away from something that's just not that good for you.

I wish I can. I wish I have a way. I wish I know another way so I can walk away. I can walk away if I know where to go. I will walk away if I have another choice.

Until then... I can only...well... wish for that day to come.

It's about time

Updating the Filipiniana

The Indians have their sari. The Chinese have the cheongsam. The Vietnamese have the ao dai...Koreans the hanbok and Japanese the kimono. I think its about time that the Filipiniana be updated a little bit and look more modern so that more and more Filipinas will be inclined to wear it outside of formal events or worse as costumes when its a Filipiniana themed event.

A couple of friends and I have discussed how essential and important it is that every Filipina should have a terno in their closet. It is not only the perfect "go-to" dress for formal events but its a representation of who and what we are, something that we should be proud of. The terno is for the formal ones. There should also be choices when its more casual events, even day to day wear. I saw a host of a show on TFC once that she had this greenish Maria Clara type bolero jacket paired with a white tank top and jeans and it looked so cool. This is what I am talking about. We wear a certain clothing that is representative of us being Filipinas and still keep it modern and fresh and not look like we are going to some party. There have been innovations to the Barong why not do the same thing for the Filipiniana.

They still got it!

The voices...the moves..the choreography...the charms

Even after 15 years!

I was at their concert last night and I am still feeling high. It was a really fun and awesome concert. Chrissie and I didn't realize that two hours have gone by and it was so well spent. They sang cuts from their new album and of course their classic songs which don't seem to get old. Once I heard the intro notes, it brings back so many memories.

It was a fulfillment of a childhood wish and yes I am not ashamed to let the whole world know that.

Wishful thinking

Here is your horoscope
for Wednesday, October 1:

You need to relax as much as you can -- though it might be tough! Things aren't as smooth as usual and you might have to endure a bit more discomfort with friends or coworkers before they return to normal.

Soon. Very soon.

Green & White

After finding out who won Game 2, I still wore Green & White today. I have never been more proud to wear these colors than today.

It is how its should be.

This was a Finals appearance that not a lot of people expected, doubted even but the team proved people wrong. Now that's a feat!

Congratulations to the De La Salle Green Archers!!

Congratulations to the Ateneo Blue Eagles!

And here's a proof...

My family loves to eat. Needless to say we also love to eat out and try different kinds of cuisine - Filipino - all regions, Asian, American, Italian, everything. It was a cultural lesson that my parents tried to instill in us. Traveling to other countries was too much and too far in between so the next option to immerse us in different cultures was through food. I think the reason why I am this open to try different kinds of food is because our parents exposed us to them and urged us to try and not to be afraid. Sure, I don't like each and everything that they have exposed us to but at least I can say that "I've tried it, not to my liking".

It doesn't necessarily have to be a special occasion for us to eat out. Even on normal days we do but of course, its extra special when we are celebrating a birthday, an anniversary even Valentines. With just the four of them (Papa, Mama, bro and sis) left back home, with bro and sis being in Manila, my parents opted to fly to Manila to celebrate my mother's birthday early this month. They went to eat at Cafe Juanita. They were describing to me where they ate but I couldn't picture it I don't know if they took pictures that day but I sure haven't seen a single one. ( Camille).

Then just this morning, I was reading Anton's blog - Our Awesome Planet, and coincidence of all coincidence, his most recent entry was about Cafe Juanita. I was about to leave a comment that this was the restaurant where my family ate and then I saw it! One of the photos have my family on it!! It was surreal. It was only Papa who was visible to the camera. Then I saw the rest of my family, well parts of them - my sister's back, my brother's arm and Mama's arm. LOL Its the fourth picture. It cannot be denied that its Papa and I think I know what my sister was tinkering with.

The restaurant looks very nice. It has this homey, provincial feeling which reminds me of meals at my grandparents house.

More than a game

IT'S ON!!

LA SALLE - ATENEO Men's Basketball Finals!!

Coach Pumaren said it. My cousin said it. I think it is what a lot of people think as well. I thought of it but I chose to believe otherwise. We are the underdogs in this finals. The Blue team is really playing well. They are hungry. ChrisTiu is definitely hungry, well with his opting to still be a student and hoping and wishing to give Ateneo a championship before he leaves.

BUT...

We have always been underdogs, whether people want to believe that or not. I think its good to be tagged as underdogs and to feel like one. Its better to feel like you don't have everything laid out in front of you because you strive to be better, to do better, be better. I believe in the team like I have always did.

If you are a La Sallian, playing against Ateneo is never just a game. Its more than that. Its pride, its prestige, its name. Just thinking about it is giving me goosebumps.

Finals here we come. First game of the best of 3 is this Sunday, September 21!

ANIMO LA SALLE!!!