Tuna Salad I Like

I'm not really into tuna sandwiches. I especially hate those that are sold in canteens where there's more pickles than fish. But I like tuna, and I like bread, so I see no reason why I wouldn't want tuna salad sandwich. Turns out, I had to prepare it myself. I'm living in a house with a limited kitchen and I have time that I prefer to spend earning money or relaxing, so I assure you this is simpler that cooking rice in a rice cooker.

Here's my recipe (really siiiiimple):

Ingredients

2 cans tuna

-I use Century, only because it's the most accessible. But "imported" tuna (which really comes from the Philippines most times) is better. Get the ones in brine.

1 pack store-bought mayonnaise

-In post later on, I'll give you the recipe for my Mom's homemade mayo

1/2 cup celery, chopped

1/4 cup carrots, chopped

1-2 Tbsp white onion, finely chopped (unless Allan specifies, I don't like to put it)

2 small packs (baon packs) of cheese, grated

1 small lettuce head

Procedure:

Combine all ingredients. Mash the tuna if you want it finer. It should look pretty chunky. Layer on bread. If you want to make an openfaced sandwich, layer on the filling, then top with more cheese and grill in an oven until it melts. You have tuna cheese melt!

Serve with lettuce (like on the picture up top) or if you made the tuna cheese melt, serve it with the lettuce on the side as a salad with a simple vinaigrette of olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Or you can just serve the lettuce on the side as is. Allan likes to neutralize the rich tuna taste with the mellow lettuce crunch.

Busog!

How I Eat

Last night we were in Landmark. We really weren't in the mood for a splurge (and we were also scrimping) so we went away with the expensive stuff and settled with these instead. Sizzling squid and sinigang from Sizzling Seafoods.

It's simply prepared and the sinigang was good. We also got to try the tuna belly from this place before, and it was really not bad for the money you pay for it.

But everytime I have to pay so much for what really is a pre-adolescent piece of squid, when you can buy a nicely grilled and even STUFFED squid in Zamboanga for the same price. Fish and seafood here is really expensive. And I'm limited to bangus and tilapia when I'm here and I HATE tilapia. It tastes like mud. Growing up, we never had so much of tilapia. My grandmother and mother would say that it doesn't taste clean. I'm inclined to agree.

I won't even begin to tell you about crabs and prawns. Can anyone tell me why seafood is so expensive? I think that growing pigs and cows for business is more expensive. But they're cheaper when sold. Agh.

Big Oli

We went to Big Oli last Friday, just to try the place out. We wanted to go to Bellini's but it really is out of the way, and we wanted to try something new. It was a really nice place, this place they have in TriNoMa. Very homey. Anyway, we went for pasta and pizza, and we certainly didn't badly regret going here instead of Bellini's!

I had spaghetti Bolognese and pepperoni pizza. Allan had Pasta Alfredo and pepperoni pizza. That's the garlic bread, that chikalang looking thing. Both pasta dishes were great. Not very much on the olive oil which is essential in Italian cuisine, but not bad! It's pretty good stuff.

Here's my spaghetti. Now I know Bolognese is supposed to be meaty, and this one is obviously not, but I loved it. I HATE meaty spaghetti. I like pasta and sauce, that's it. For me, meat just gets in the way. My spaghetti here is mostly tomato sauce and chopped canned tomatoes, light and tart, but in a good way. Which is just perfect for me. The Alfredo was also lightly seasoned and fresh.

The pizza, not too oily and not too salty. Great. And for under Php500 (with refillable drinks) we'll definitely come back for more.

Japanese Food

I can't truly say that I love Japanese food because saying so (at least in my definition ot it) would mean that I can eat Japanese food everyday. That's not my case. I only eat Japanese food maybe once or twice a month during good times. But when I do get a hankering for Japanese, I usually follow it.

But you know what my favorite Japanese food is? Gari. It's the pickled young ginger that they serve as a side dish. It serves as a palate cleanser. And personally, I think this is a great way to break the sometimes monotonous taste of Japanese food.

I'm told that gari is very easy to make. After rummaging through many Japanese-food blogs, I came up with this pretty easy to follow recipe. This one is for a small serving only, but of course, it's easy to double or triple the recipe if you have to.

Ingredients

-1/8 kilo of young ginger (The ginger has to be young or it won't be crispy anymore. Also, old ginger tastes stronger and you lose that distinct gari taste. Young ginger is almost entirely pink in color, but I'm told that for the common variety of ginger here in the Philippines, young ones are those that have pink/purple tips)

-2 Tbsp of table sugar

-1/2 cup rice vinegar (Accordingly, Marukan brand is good)

-1/4 tsp of salt

Procedure

-Wash ginger and peel. Use a spoon to peel the ginger as this makes the process easier. Cut in thin, even slices. I use a sharp or serrated fruit peeler for this step. The pieces shoud be very thin.

-Pat dry the ginger and salt them. After more or less an hour, squeeze out the juice. If you want your gari to be more gingery, skip the squeezing part and just rinse the ginger to remove excess salt.

-Place the gari in a container.

-Mix sugar, vinegar and salt in a pot and allow to simmer/lightly boil. You can add more sugar or more salt. It really depends on your palate.

-Pour the pickling solution over the ginger.

Iron Chef

I found it! I found it!


I remember I'm holding this really huge mango Dominic (Cabatit) gave us. I'll try to find more pictures, but those mangoes are really HUGE. Like two to three times larger than the average Indian or Apple mango.

Rummaging, rummaging

I was looking for my picture where I posed like an Iron Chef, but I came up with this:

The Band of Losers I called it. Haha. This one was taken after the semi-final rounds during my last tour in the fiesta debates. I should let that moment go, but I can't. I love Alain, I love Jill's team even if they defaulted which is the reason for the whole thing. But I.CANNOT.LET.IT.GO. I was scarred for life. My last fiesta debate tourney was going to be mine and Henry's imaginary farewell to in-school debating. And we both failed. Hidden behind those smiles are minds full of murderous intent. I admit it!

But all's well, we went on to win the MPDC's anyway:

I realized just now that I'm actually wearing the same cardigan in both pictures. Isn't that just droll? :))

But admittedly, that debate tournament wasn't that satisfying a win. The people we wanted to end up with in the finals weren't there. So...

Henry told me about NDC (National Debate Championships) the other day. It's really tempting, and yes, I am qualified. But it's been such a long time, I doubt if I'm going to be of any use to any partner. But still...it's a thought.

The World is Happy

Emotionr said today that the world is happy. That's nice, considering that the Emo-I-Hate-The-World colonies seem to be growing. I'm happy, too. I'm happy because it's so unflattering to be sad. A friend once told me that I am incapable of sadness, only anger and happiness. And I really cannot remember a specific moment when I was sad. I can't remember one single moment even if I try to remember real hard.

That's not to say that I have never gone through some tough times. Doesn't mean that you see me often as the sarcastic and often loud (or sometimes disinterested) rollypolly that I didn't have to hustle through life. I did hustle. I had to choose between staying or leaving. I had to hustle my way through several interviews to make it here.

I also had to deal with sadness, death, loss and pain. Who hasn't? Mine was, and still isn't, a comfortable life. But I'm not bitter. Really, I'm not. I'm not sad. Whenever I had to take a blow, I just get really pissed (at myself) at having lost, or happy that I fought a good one.

So I never understand why some people just get depressed. It can be physiological, though, if your body's really lacking in some hormones (endorphin ba?), but mostly it's all in their heads.

A line from Dexter (the series on Showtime): "We're both evil people. But the difference is that I know I'm a monster, while you think you're a victim." Translation: We all have gone through a down period, but I knowI'm better than this. From experience, the people I know who seem sad and miserable all the time are those who think that they don't deserve what happened or think that they deserve to suffer. The way I view it, no one does.

A Little Bit of Funny

This one never fails to make me laugh. I was feeling a bit annoyed this morning so I decided to post this here as well. Until now I do not know who the hell put all those comments (in red) there. It's just an email I received ages ago.

The Dying English in the Friendster World

1) Ayumi
Occupation: student
Companies: rockers companies!
Hobby: chating!!
wants to meet "pretty girls!! only!! hehes!!" (Bakit kaya installment? Read this with feelings for maximum appreciation. Complete with the pauses.)

2) -GEniE Lou-
aBouT me???? (Eh kailangan pa ba namang i-reiterate na about you ito?) A persOn wHo is veRy conservative, have positive outlook in lyf, suMtyms I brEak pRomises dat can cause someone angry w/ me (Grrrrr!!! Nakakagalit talaga!) .... im very productive person... everytime i do some task or deeds i will make a plan 1st b4 i go 4 it. im very fond ! in listening 2 musizzzz im da type of person dat tells frankly (And Frankly would be... your best friend's name?)

3) jOnah-nUevE 'kikAy fOe RiL'
Companies: oN mAh hiStOry.. wYL i WAs On A mAll hOppiNg.. sUmvody GAve mE A stArstruck fOrM... HAhA! itz kinDA wEiRD.... wAtZ uP wit dAt huH? (What's up with YOU???)

4) -aNnA-
MaArtE,SEnSItive, SuPlAdITa, FRiEnDly, fAshiOnIStA, KikAy, AtTraCtiVe AnD EveRytHinG NiCE THaT Was Me!! (Was ba talaga?) MaTaLinO (ThEReS N o OnE IN THiS WoRLd hAs stUpId MiNDs) (You might want to reconsider this.) mAaRte aKo PeRo InDi AkO mAlAnDE-jUZ DOn'T EvEr jUdGe Me cOz yOu dONt mE aT AlL.... (Huh?) AND ..... YoU MuZ ReMEmBeR eVeRYtHinGs hAs a reAsONS..... DoNt ! DArE mE COz YoU DoNt knOw wHaT CaN I dO (Eh parang clueless ka din naman eh.) SoMe peopLe dOnT UnDErSTaNd WhAT Is my aTtItUde BUt dOnT JuDgE aNyOnE...... .. i pRoTeCT my fRieNdS...aNd pRoTeCt YoUrs :) (I sure will-from you.)

5) catherine joyii
Affiliations: Catholic (Bang!)

"dont lyk pipol hu r very: PLASTIKS, pa EPAL, LIARS and anything na mga BAD ATTITUDE I like hu r vry gud.... (Huh? Who?)!!! "and if u want me to ur friend, jaz aDD me uP" (Bang! Bang!)

6) alexandra rose sobida
About Her: long hair, bolding eyes (Hmm... meaning?), red lips and long life (Amen!)
Who She Wants to Meet: a spiecial boy in my hole life forever and ever (Amen ulit!)

7) maria princesa
caption ng picture: "am i look good"
Affiliations: An roman catholic
Favorite TV Shows: OPHRA (Of-ra ba kamo?)
About Her: Me......... hmmmmmm ...... simpl! e and always happy....... . i know you've get it.......... . (Actually, hindi.)
wants to meet "somebody who has a sen se of humor and simple gets" (Simple gets. Maghanap ka ng ibang kausap, 'ne!)

8) lito
Companies: wa lang. im just in the class room seating on my chair and flerting with gurls....... (Tsk, tsk. Yur a beri bud boi ah!)
TV Shows: Whos line is that? (Nabitin sa title.) and teleseryes
About him: I am a 19 year old strait guy, and i love doing creative stuff and having fun.... entering personal relationships with girls and guys even gays is okey with me as long as they are mature and responsible enough to hundle a relationship. By the way!!! (Shet. Naninigaw siya!) before, I was against bisexual relationships en even sexual intercoarses (Papel de liha daw. Magaspang eh.) between same sexes, that was me before that memorable night happen to me when i was in 4th year highschool.. .. (Sus! Baka mabasa 'to ng mga magulang mo!)

Sa inyong pagbaybay sa kanyang fantasy land (aka friendster profile-"about me" section) kung maaari lamang po'y 'wag niyong kaligtaan bigyan ng pansin ang mga sumusunod:
boardmaits
permission to my parents
inerested
desided
leaking ("Licking" 'to actually.)
niples (Hala. Kulang. Baka 1 lang din ang kanya.)
stroakign (believe me, he meant "stroking.")
saterday
apartmen
doing our staff i realizes (I DEMAND A REFAND!!!) < /div>

9) lady biolente
caption ng picture: "it's meh,panget koh d2 bat kya!!! hehehe" (Hmm... bakit nga kaya?)
Occupation: collage student (Wow. BA Collage ba 'yan? Sana nag-fine arts ka na lang para diverse tapos major in collage!)
Movie: the ant (At starring sino naman kaya?)
About her: ahm.......about meeh!!!??? ATTITUDE? kind,suplada minsan.. pro most of da tym mabait meeeh..., makulit, lagi na nka-smyl ngaun... talented pa! i can dance. i can sing....i can fly basta ba my wings, eh...he!he!he! (Feeling langaw.) OUTLOOK? syempre magand a,noh! alangan nmn laitin k ang sarili koh...height koh? 5'3'' ASSET KOH? my legs sbi nila.... taken na meehh....... ...should I say yes!? (No. Utang na loob, paki intindi ng mga pinagsusulat niya.)

10) Geneveve
Occupation: business women (Marami siguro silang may-ari ng account na 'to.)
Affili ations: business
Hobbies: watcing tv (Watsing?)
About her: beutiful and honest
wants to meet... i want ta meet people is simple only (Good luck with that.)

11) christopher
Hobbies: lapping trip (Macho dancer in da house!) ; tambay; sound trip; gumala
My Looks: punkiztah (Eh talaga bang kailangan 'to?)

12) masaaki
Affiliations: Governor (Sa bagay, puwede nga namang he's affiliated with the governor... pero mali eh...! Maliiiiii!)
Hobbies and Interests: play guitar and to be band
About Him: cOoL... taLL.... sMarT.... & mO$t oF th! aT tRuth LovEr.... (As in ".mahal ang katotohanan" o "true lover" ba dapat?) ha..ha...ha. ...ha.... .ha..... eVerythiNgs' trUth (Words of wisdom from Masaaki * Palakpakan *)

13) gummibear
About Me:"im kaRReL.. iM a giRL hu oLweZ waNa b HappY buT jSt cnT b! I cAn eiTHer b sEriouS oR siLLy... liBeraTed,,fuN. .no worrieS.. iM a prActiCal woMan n I eiTHer (Baka naman "I'd rather...") Lose mY heart dAN my bRaiNS.. (So which one DID you lose? Clue naman diyan...) it'S harD 2 piCk uP d piEceS oF my liFe..,, veRy comPlicaTed. . buT noT noW.. (Ano ba talaga? Complicated ba o hindi?) i dNt bLiV iN dEsTinY iM abouT reALiTy., uR liFE iS in uR hAnds//// so uR d 1 hu coMpLicaTe iT...." (No, no, no-YOU complicate it.)

14) maricel
Occupation: looking a job (Magandang career 'yan.)
Hobbies: dancing, chatting, reading book, outting outdoors (Outting outdoors... hmm. I wonder...)
Favorite Book: The Purpose Driven in life (Ito ba talaga ang title ng aklat na ito?)
M! usic: fashions (Maaari bang bigyang linaw ninyo kung anong nagaganap dito?)

15) Breeks
Favorite Music: stay w/ cushe, the day u said gudnyt w/ hale, kahit pa w/ hale again, specialy 4 u w/ MYMP, tell me y it herts (Eh ilang kilo Hertz ba iyan?) w/ MYMP again, love moves in mysteriuos ways w/ NINA ehehehe!!!!
About Me: im a person n siryoso pro happy ksm en i dont like sa mga pipol n plastik gus2 ko ung dldl ("Daldal" pala 'to. Akala ko naman kung ano...) pro my sen ce ung cnsabi en real... im sure n mag kksundo tyo!!! Practically (Baka "basically." ) i want pretty girls but honestly i like mostly girls who are nice to accompany (Escort service ba ang hanap niyo?) and not malandi ...waaaaah i hope i cud fyn special one !!! (Lord, ang sakit na talaga ng ulo ko.)

16) Anthony
Affiliations: hardcore serial killer/frustrated assassin, computer addict (Malamang "describe yourself" ang pagkakaintindi niya dito.)
Favorite Movie: Harry Potter all the movies that were already shown and including the one's that is still being made (Wow, advanced.)
Favorite Music: alternative, rock, mellow, pop, kahit ano basta hale o cueshe ( Aba , very seasoned ah.)
About Me: im just a person who sit's silently on one corner (Yeah. And stay there.)

17) -pRettY cAng-
Favorite Music: ACOUSTIC...reggea (Huh?)

"me?? im just a si mple girl... hmmm... sometimes im othistic" (Ayuneeeee! Ops, wala akong sinabi...! It came straight right out of the proverbial horse's mouth!)

"loves 2 eat but still sexy and i carry myself very well with the way I look and the way i dress." (Why don't we just take her word for it?)

"when it comes to my character, i reflect myself as a conforming one because i have tested myself of doing things which anticipated to be done." (Tissue, please. Dumudugo ang ilong ko.)

18) SheZzO GraniTy
Hometown: AurOrA wEr CrimE iS OrGaniZeD (Ingat dito mga kapatid.) En ThA RuLe 2 FoLLoW (Is what...?)
Schools: sTa.cLarA wEr pLenTy oF mUrdErEr OccUrS (Tandaan ang paaralang ito-'wag ie-enroll ang mga bata dito.)
Affiliations: ThuG BaLLa bAbY oF kArEn rOsE
About Me: i CamE FrOm a SmaLL TowN wEr oL ThA GenGsTerS- kiLLahZ- DruG DeaLahZ- YounG bLoOdS- LiVin aLonE AnD biG TyM SinDiCaTe ArE OcCurS (Ito pala ang nuknukan... Ano ba'ng number sa police station?)

19) -lil LiZ-:
"rOcKeRz!! n pUnKz!!!! ASTIG!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!" (Yeah. Sure.)

Affiliations: tEnNaGe LiFe!! (Double dead ito. Mali na, wrong spelling pa. Tsk.)
Favorite Movies: chukie 1 and 2 (Chukie? Malamang habulin ka talaga ng saksak ng manikang 'to dahil na-misspell mo yung pangalan niya.)

wants to meet "ANYONE. if ya want to know more just sen me a message!!" (Once again, no tenks.)

20) -'kEiXi'-
Hometown: nAVOetAst (In truth, NAVOTAS. Haaaay. Baketttttttttt? ????)
About Me: aqOuh?? (Hindi-ako daw...) .. cHimPle LAng.. bUT cAn maKE yUr hEAd tURn (Feel ko na nga mag-a la-Exorcist this far eh.) ,, *HoTcHiC**sEXy dAw..cHAvii nG mGAh fWEnDz qEw (Masyado kang nagpapaniwala. ...) .. sVi qEw nAMn.. mAdAnDa aqEw.. maArTE?/..sObra ** hiHi.. nDi mHEii mAarTE.. kAla nYOuh lAng yUn,, kSHi cHigURo .. yU fOUnd mE.. wEAriNg uNiqUe eAriNgs.. (So...?) USing mAkEuP.. oWeYs lOoKing mY fACe in tHE mirror.. mAarTE bAh yUN? (Hindi naman masyado)
who i want to meet: "xA aCcoUnt qEw..kHit cHiNU pwEde.. kHit ikA'y mUkhang .. tAtaNgAPEn kiTAh bsTAh bAH TEZti cOUh aAhh" (Yuneeeeeeee! !! Testimonial pala ang habol.)

21) PrEtty StEpS IV
Affiliations: vOLLeYBaLL pLaYeR, cOLLeGe sTuDeNt, pARt tiMe MoDeL (iN MAHdReaMZ) (Huy, gising!), ChEEr DanCER & UR fRiEnDLiEsT nEiGhBoR iN ToWn......!! !! ( Aba , waynat?!)

"I wud nEver faLL again fOr soMeOne he's hEad oVer heeLs wiTh (So you're into girls...?) iN Comes To A rELATIONShIP I am faiTHfuL aNd sweet I haTes aNd curSes pLayErs (Playaz beware!) I am eMoTioNaL, I lisTens to My mind buT I stiLL foLLows My heart (Gollum? Is this you?) someone U Can tRUsT On

THANK YOU FOR PATRONIZING MY FRIENDSTER ACCOUNT LOVE YOU ALL (Uy, artista. Love lots ba?)

22) -sTaY ovErLoaD-
Hometown: TaGuiG..ThE FLazE To bEE..MaHoGanY (Yes naman!)
Occupation: boniFiEd (na-Boni? Ano?) and cErTiFied HeavEn ringEr..aLpha MaN.. (Meaning...? )
Affiliations: aFiLL-FuLL and ThuguFuLL..ThEY r grEaT jusT 4 onE nigHT buT iM grEaT evErY nigHT!! (Something tells me that... nah... 'wag na lang. Think what you want.)

23) Jean
Companies: Schools (Puwede naman...)
Affiliations: Cristianity (Yun na!)
Who I Want to Meet: "be always respect the universal trademark clan within the highest organization" (Oh. My Gadddd. This could be the motherest of them all grand statements, don't you think?)

24) adora
Companies: companies of CUTE PERSON (Yeah. What. Ever.)
Favorite Movies: thombraider (Thom the Braider daw? Ano?)

"ME...a simple GOD creature (Right... Of course you are.) , a high climber (Feeling unggoy.) & aggressive person, i want a new clothes, books..... ( Aba . At may wishlist pa!) some of my other descriptions are---->friendly, jealousy, cute, honest..." (Just what exactly was he trying to do here again?)

"i love spaghetty" (Aaah... ako, spaghetti ang gusto ko.)

Who I Want to Meet: A CUTE PERSON..and i hate a person who has a BAD IMAGE like being ignored, finishing second, hand-me-downs, waiting, LIAR, forgetfullnes, haste, feeling ignorant, vulgarity, ugliness, being pressured, LOUD ARGUMENTS & MAKING PROMISES.. (May kaunting kaguluhan.)

25) giriz
Affiliations: Bsta Nilalang sa EarTh pro luv c God (Oh... And what do we have here?)

"i like" play badminton." (Me don't like.)

"My true name: Giriz Romanos" (At an o naman yung fake?)

"I was born: in Earth!!!" (Are you sure? Is that your final answer?)

"I dont juge the book by its cover I read it first" (Aminin nating may punto siya... pero BWAHAHAHAHAAAAAAA pa rin!)

26) ooohweeeh gUl
Ms. "beat mah sexxy ass if u fwakin can" (I won't even fwakin try! Man!!! WHAT does this mean???)
About Me: "im juss a simple gul wit very naughty attitudes that guys might like and love" (Guys, totoo ba 'to?)
Who I Want to Meet: "i want to meet different pips ho can carry dir self very and has strong personality" (Haaaaay.)

27) Bhabes
Affiliations: sana magkaroon ako ng boy friend n very gentleman, and caring person at igagalang k ng 22o. (Kami siguro, igagalang niya. Ikaw... sana rin.)
Favorite Books: ..."a dauther is a forever" (A what is forever??? Hala na...)
Favorite TV Shows: amanda show, spongebob disney, rush hour 2, parents trap, freacky Friday (Parang freacky freckles ang naisip ko dito...) basta ung nakakakilig na panoorin., ung mga tpong png lovers only.ung nkakakilig (Ay ewan ko sa'yo.)

28) Jha
Favorite Music: aLL e'M oF mUsIc As SoOn ThAt It's NoT iRrITaTe Me (YOU irritate me.)
About Me: !nSan3 Of NaTuRe: I liKe aLwAyS aN aDvEnTuRe & ThriLL iN mAh LiF3 i NeVer LoSt ThAt cOz, I'm The On3 who LoOk & FiNd FoR tHat B4 k!!! rYt nOw NOTHING!!! jUsT aN oRdInARy Mhe (But still insane of nature, quite obviously.)
Who I Want to Meet: who need to talk to someone. (Is this a question? Maybe YOU need to talk to someone-at sana magkaintindihan kayo.)

29) m E d Y FULL
Favorite Books: lovHisToRy Of My SeLf by: The one who es YOu!!!!! It's mE!! (Teka, nahulog ako sa upuan ko.)
About Me: "...i'm a simple person with a simple traits... dat's ol!" (Bow. I tenk you.)
Who I Want to Meet: "i want to meet ol of you, someone lyk you, whose fun to be with... of coarse... YOU"" (Ikaw-ikaw ang magaspang. Pareho kayo ni Contestant #8.)

30) Giselle
Hobbies: "im fun of texting ... im fun of dancin, sleeping, eating and singing and also fun of spending time with my frends" (Wow! What a FUN person you are! Ganito din ang fave books niya-"I'm fun of...")

"i want to make friends to all the pipol in the world!!! .... i want to meet pipol who is friendly and jam to be with!!" (Hayyyyy... Diyos na mahabagin!)

31) Gtonjethone
"Don't let my looks fool you! Im a EDUCATED FOOL w/ PARTIES, DISCO AND GAMES in my MIND!" (Uy! Gangsta's Paradise na combo meal! Sakto!)

"...Sometime i go further till 6 or 7am..." (Ano daw?)

"I want a long hair! (Isa lang ba talaga ang gusto mo?) So i can copy my sitmates answer w/out being seen by my teacher!" (Tsk, tsk. Principal's office na 'to.)

"I love ANEMI FANATICS like myself!" (Ang dapat sa'yo ay Hara Kiri.)

32) cOmWiZgiRL VII
"iM a siMpLe girL!prO mnSn rAkiZtA oUtfit aQ!" (Tsssssssss. Kayo ang nagpapababa ng kahulugan ng pagiging rocker.)

"Luk mtrAy at chUpLaDa dw cHAbi nG mGa kpitbhy nMin" (What's with the "ch-"? Geez.)

"d aQ mAartE!(pWerA LnG iF tiNO2pAk aQ!)" (At mukhang lagi kang tinotopak.)

wants to meet "ung mga nkanursing na uniform. (i duNnO y, maybE tHey nEat)" - (Yeah. Maybe.)

33) tEtHeN
Hobbies and Interests: cmPle Lng...bOys.. bOys...and bOys...bSta lOt oF boYs... (I leave it up to my discerning fellow readers to pass judgment on this one...)
Favorite Books: ..y U mAkE me fiL xo gAga Ba wiD yaH..!!!???! ! (Minumura na ba tayo?)

"dMIng KOng lAit sA mgA cHakA...wAhekS" (Hulaan mo kung kanino ako maraming lait... that's right!)

wants to meet someome "tO bE mY crYinG sHoulDer aNd mY stRenGht" (O, calling on all those na may crying shoulder...)

34) raceL
"its been a long time since i involved in a relationship" (I think I know why...) so pls hands off if ur just playing on me..." (Noli Me Tangere.) You can always here me sharing my opinions to others" (Here you? O baka there you? Ano ba?)

"During my past-time, i browse and browse internet..." (Adik ka!)

friends: "as long as we clicked each other's company...that' s fine with me" (Huh?)

"Some says I'm a masungit" (Ay. Dizz iz it, folks.)

35) kleeny (Hanep sa pangalan. Tamang-tama, sinisipon ako.)
Companies: Not Yet. (O 'wag daw muna! Atat ka eh.)
Favorite Books: All Books as long as there are sense about LOVE ( Sana ito ring sinabi mo na 'to may sense.)

"U will enjoy my company...I assure you 4 that" (Nako, girl! FOR THAT, featured ka dito!)

"I have a long curly Hair (Take note: isang kulot na buhok lang.) & my friends said that i have a cute Chinese eyes!!" (Naniningkit na ba kayo sa asar?)

"Want to Meet? Whoever, whatever as long as they are Good & Respected People (Politicians, perhaps?). I like a Persons who are Triple S stands for SIMPLE, SWEET & SINCERE..." (Tandaan sa darating na halalan!)

36) shanlee
Affiliations: socialization (Somebody-anybody, please start defining affiliations. Utang na loob.)

"easy to belong with specially to those people hu r nice too"

37) Maricar
Affiliations: cosmetics (This part has never ceased to amaze me.)
Hobbies and Interests: ...making friends globally (Hello, Ms Congeniality! )

"sometime I can't hide 'the child in me'." (Paki tago, please.)

"I firmly believe that 'The way to A Man's Heart is Through His Stomach' thats why i like winning my man by preparing him delicious and nutritious food." (Thank you, Dr Quack-Quack. )

Who I Want to Meet: I want him to be HIMSELF!!!!! (Sino daw? Buti 'di mo sinabing "I want to be HIMSELF!" Buti na lang talaga...)

38) jAcMuZiKaDiK- V
fave music: i DiG aLm0Zt oL KiNdZ gez m so versatile. (Uhh, yeah. Right.)

"im s0o0o0o0 REAL...thts foe meh!!" (Foe meeh, yoe not, dawg.)

"sounds COINCEITED but m not!!!" (May identity crisis ang COINCEITED na ito.)

"i dnt have d ASS( w/c most of d guyz dig n2)..." (Shet! Dig INTO?! Arayyyyyyyy! !!)

39) JeAn
"my friend call me roni for short bu! t to make it long call me roni-jean" (Pahabain pa ba natin ang usapan?)

she "can be please easily" & "know how to deal wth diff.type of person (even d tambay i can deal wth dem)" ( Aba , tignan niyo nga naman!)

"vulgar...i can say wt i wnt....even its not gud in ur ear..." (Now look what you've done! Kanina ilong lang... now my ears are bleeding too!!! Huhuhu!)

40) Collen May
"I am Ms. Personality and Ms. Congeniality (Ibig sabihin, hindi daw siya kagandahan.) daw with long black straight hair and morena. I am friendly in school (especially with the teachers- (Kailangan eh...ops! Hindi sipsip-friendship lang ito.) ) and even the alumni people!!! Kasi some of them are my neighbors."

"I love wearing and accesorizing clothes to make myself beautiful... :-) (Nag-work naman ba?) hello...joke lang po! They say i walk like a model or just pretending to walk like one but its the way i walk, really it's the truth and nothing but! (O ha?! O ha?!)"

41) Daryl
"me?? im ayl hndi mganda pro SEXY!hehehe. .! pangit pro MATALINO. Hndi kgandahan pro MABAIT..." (Ipinagdiinang pangit siya. What can I say?)

42) Aaron
"Ahhhhhhmmmmm! !!!! Just add me to your friend.... (Uhh... sige. Kanino mo gusto?) If you really wanna know about mee (No, I really don't.)!!!!!, but just an impression, im not gonna be what you expect" (Oh really? Try me.)

43) wilmar
"im a true freind that im willing to fight my friends (Panigurado, pala-away ang batang ito.) , sometimes she can be rude if you want to and she really hates plastic person (What did I miss? Who's "she?"). im prank very prank (You're a joke, that's for sure.) and if i hates i tell it to them para hinde nila masabi na im so beas." (Do you think he (or she-whatever) means "bias" here? Whatchuguystink? )

44) tThHaaALyN
Affiliations: meeting different ki nd of people...=> those people who I can easily asses myself with...=D (This is too much for my kokote.)
Hobbies and Interests: people who's fun to be with ! and interesting. .....have mood swings too...wen provoked!! im a different type of girl... not the one that u always encounter wid!! (Nadapa pa. Dinagdagan pa kasi ng "with" eh. Tsk, tsk.)

"want 2 mit?? well does people who's please to mit me 2!!!" (Sabog na ulo ko.)

45) Princess
Affiliations: im friendly and everything:) (Huhuhu... why, God???)

"im fund of music... ("Fund" naman ang drama nito, hindi na "fun" (see Contestant #30). Mukhang mayaman!) i want to... build a Europian school here in the Philippines " (Mayaman nga 'ata...)

Who I Want To Meet: "im open for all..." (Feeling Ministop.)

46) 'marlaX'
"mah hair s quite long a nd sleek wit a bang" (Medyo nahuli, pero happy new year pa rin!)

"i hv ds pierce on mah upper left ear" (On yawh uppah left eah ba? Tigazzzzz!)

"kaya pls lng wlang poporma at wag mgbalak manligaw dto!" (Hint, hint! Mag-reverse psychology ba?)

47) Jas
Motto: If there's a will, There's a will... (Haaay. Been there been that.)
Favorite Day: Everyday (Sa bagay, 7 lang naman ang araw sa isang lingo...)

J - jesus*
A - almighty*
S - savior*

* (What the...?!?!? Can't we just leave Jesus out of this? Geez...)

48) Arvie Jan
"ako ang nag-inspired kay Boy Abunda sa fassion." (Ows?)

"because relationship comes and go but friendship is forever!!! ininglish pa yun!!!" ( Aba . Proud pa siya.)

49) Joel
all of you are welcome in my friendster.. . even if you are a girl,boy,lesbian, gay,hunk, or naugthy...or either you are a bisexual or trisexual... (Wow. Lahat tanggap niya. Kamon let's join us!)

50) beware
"so kung feel mo akong maging friend, take the risk! face all the hardships and danger... hu knows? baka dun mo makita ang kasiyahan na hindi mo pa nadarama sa buhay mo.." (Hmm... do you think this is a threat?)

51) riechell

"mahilig sumali sa contest at pagent at nag-hahakot ng awards tulad ng sports wear at specially ang miss. photogenic"

Moulin Rouge and Just Loving

Because I cannot find anything better to do right now, I will tell you about a line in Moulin Rouge (and of course is a part of the song Nature Boy). I'd like to think of it as the central thread of the movie: The Greatest Thing You'll Ever Learn is Just to Love and be Loved in Return.

It just sounded so...well, basic. What was a totally basic thing doing in this totally elaborate, imeldific movie?

It's there because it's not as simple as you may think of it. Let's review the actual wording of that statement. The greatest thing you'll ever learn is JUST to love and be loved in return. Why the word "just"? Why not put "to love and be loved in return"? Is it a mere wordplay?

I'd like to think that it's not. It was put there for a reason and that is that the message of the line does not call for people to love someone, but to JUST love someone. Basta mahalin mo na lang. Just do it, for the sake of it. And not because you expect something in return, be it love or whatever else, but because you truly feel that elusive feeling for someone.

But this line pushes the envelope more by saying "and to be loved in return" which is probably the pinnacle of that emotion. That is why, I think, that there are as many songs, poems and uhm, blogs about unrequited loved as requited love. Because feeling either one is already lesson enough to educate anyone about love.

And that's all I have to say about that.

Tuts My Barreh

Courtesy of my many comically Twitterified people, I have found another sister of Kenlee (the butchered version of Without You in Bulgarian Idol or something). This one is called Tuts My Barreh, the bastardized version of (yet another!) Mariah song, Touch My Body. Please Click: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G7oGx2dImE8

Did You KNOW??

I don't know what environmental condition this tree is looking for, but if you grew up anywhere near Zamboanga, you've SHOULD also know what this tree/fruit is.

In Zamboanga, we call it Kamias or sometimes Kamias redondo, to differentiate it from its elongated cousin. The one we usually use for paksiw. But this one is eaten out of hand or as a snack, I do usually with sugar sweetened soy sauce. If you've tried it, my method for eating it is bite half, then dip the bitten part into the sawsawan, take out the pit from the remaining part and dip again. It's really sour and because it's juicier than green mangoes, the sourness stays on longer. But do you know what they're called in English?

They're called Tahitian Gooseberries. Sosyal! Hahaha

Ginamus

Ah, ginamus. I can truly say that I love this stuff more than I love bagoong. While they are are made through the same process, salting and fermentation, nothing beats that nice fishy taste of ginamus. Bagoong can sometimes be scaly or have an itchy mouthfeel and most of the time the salt granules would not be completely melted so the end product is not as smooth as I would want it to be.

However, I'm not really sure about which one I like more, ginamus made of small, teeny weeny itsy bitsy fish or those made from regular sized dilis. I remember that we used to have this large plastic container, like the one up top, of ginamus. Sometimes it will be filled with small-fish or regular-dilis ginamus but either way, I would eat it with anything. I like it with fish or meat, and especially with green mangoes shredded so fine. I also like it with this vegetable dish my mom used to cook. Remember, we were really cash poor, so all our meals where, to put it politely, very creative. This particular veggie dish would have malunggay, okra, kangkong, and some garlic, onions and tomatoes. No oil is used. My mom would just dump all those veggies in a pot, add water and season it with vetsin and salt. The result is like tinolang gulay. It was great with the salty fishiness of ginamus with kalamansi and the whole fish in the ginamus would be like the sahog of the dish. Simple and delicious!

I also like ginamus with boiled unripe saba bananas. The bananas have to unripe, you see, so that it will give that starchy background to the ginamus. But my mom said that the best kind of bananas for ginamus is the type she calls laun. Meaning bananas that are unripe but have grown old on the tree itself. It seems that for some reason, some bananas never grow yellow, ripe and sweet on the tree. It just remains starchy and bland but the taste of the fruit itself is not mapakla (feel free to tell me what the English equivalent of this word is). And I think it's true. Laun saba banana is the better pair for ginamus.

Plumania

The Plum.

I love this little fruit. It's sweet, tangy and juicy. Although being called a plum is not exactly a great compliment, enjoying this fruit, I think, is the greatest compliment you can give to Mama Nature. Haha

So anyway, growing up, I never really saw a nice fresh plum, being only very close to its wrinkled brothers, prunes. Prunes are dried plums, research tells me. However in many parts of the UK plums are often referred to as prunes. I also wonder why this little nameplay come to be. What will I be called when I get old and dried up? Emillune? Bad joke, I know.

Growing up, I also never saw plums in Zamboanga.

So I bought a little tray of three plums in a Korean greengrocer near my office here in Leviste. Pricey as they are (Php100 for three pieces size of a small-medium fist) I bought them and did not regret it. I can't really tell you exactly how plums taste like? But I can tell you what it does NOT taste like. It does not taste like prunes. At all. The closest description (though it'll be far off the left field) would be something like the hydrib fruit of rambutan and fuji apple. I know... yuck.

Like its cousins the peach and nectarine (another nameplay since nectarines taste and look exactly the same as peaches, only without the fuzzy skin) the plum has a very cutesy shape and the characteristic groove on one side.

I was planning on saving one for Allan, but the fruit beckoned:"Eat me! Eat me!" so I did.

It's my Birthday! (In a couple of days, atleast)

In a couple of days, I'll be having my birthday! Wee! Anyway, I'm thinking of some pretty neat and cheap stuff to do on my special day. *wink*

1. Get cake. I don't particularly remember having a cake for my birthday. I saw in pictures of my first few birthday that I indeed had cake, but as soon as I got into school, the thing stopped. So I'm bringing it back this year. I'm a cheapsie and I'll just celebrate with Allan alone, so I will probably get a minicake or a junior sized thing. Allan said he wants Ube Cake, but I'm pretty non-committal about that. I kinda like the sound of a Haagen Dazs ice cream cake.

AND

2. Get a Birthday picture taken. I don't care if this is a studio thing or in that photobooth in Timezone, but I want to have a wacky picture as a keepsake. I also want to have a picture of Allan and I. Like together.

My Eight Glasses a Day

I never really cared for water. I know, though, that Nea cares for it a lot. Oh, and I mean the drinking kind. I'm not a big water drinker. I feel like after a while, my mouth will taste bitter and...you know...like flushed out. And that is not a very good feeling for me.

I wonder how this will affect my future children (if any). I mean, parents are supposed to teach their kids healthy habits, right? Drinking eight glasses a day would, I assume, be one of the basics. I remember my father, in my very few memories of him, trying to eat vegetables without throwing up just to show me that eating veggies will make be strong and healthy. Will I end up drinking water, maybe with my eyes closed, just so my own children will learn it?

Of course, that is IF it's really true that we need 8 glasses or about two liters of water everyday.

So am I dehydrating myself, you say? Nope. I really like soda, but because of my expanding hips and widening thighs, I prefer to take what I think is a healthier choice in tea and juice. The juice I drink is horribly watered down, so I can cut the sugar, but at least my drinking fluids don't taste so bland.

And there's tea. On lazy days I just pick up a liter (or now a 1.5L) bottle of C2. I prefer the regular variety. The others with artificial flavorings just make me puke. But I think the star of my tea drinking life is Chrysanthemum Tea. I discovered this a couple of years ago back when One bottled tea still produced it. When they (I think) phased it out, I was totally bereft of the only liquid that CAN make me drink the recommended two liters a day.

So when I moved here, the one of the first things I did was to look for Chrysanthemum tea in the bigger groceries, only to find none. It was only recently that I was able to find REAL dried Chrysanthemum flowers in Ongpin. They look like this:

So you of course make them laga in a pot for five to ten minutes. I prefer my Chrysanthemum tea as is, but the Chinese people in Ongpin swear by it's extraordinary taste when mixed with green tea. But on its own, it has a nice sweet, clean taste and delicate aroma. If you get white flowers the tea should have a mellow yellow color. If you get the bright yellow ones, you get tea that has a very happy golden tint. I also like it cold, though I can imagine it will be just as delicious when hot. Although I did find that making the tea too cold or icy is not that good because you lose the little nuances of its flowery aftertaste. The guy who sold the stuff said that is has a cooling effect, and yes, it really does!



A kilo of these dried flowers will cost around Php80-100 and will come wrapped in Chinese newspaper. Haha. There are more expensive versions sold in sealed tin cans, but according to the tindera, the taste is just the same, and it is only the packaging that makes it expensive. Recently, we went back to Ongpin and I discovered instant Chrysanthemum tea. It's in granulated form. Kinda looks like birdfeed:
And so I can make Chrysanthemum tea here in the office. The one I bought came in plastic Ziploc bags (hopefully melamine-free) for Php80 for a half kilo. It's already a little sweeter than the usual because they added honey, but it's good. I just put around 2 1/2 to 3 tablespoons into my liter bottle. I love it. Hope you get to try this or make your own!

My Handwriting

I wish I had some sort of sample of my handwriting. It's really terrible. Really is. But it really didn't start that way. I had coherent and straight handwriting, I think. Only it has gotten worse after I really stopped writing with a pen and paper. Practically everything I write now is in digital form. My diary, now my blog, is of course digital. My grocery list? On my phone. Random things and numbers I have to remember are either stored on my phone or in my cookies. Sometimes I would just enter 0917---- Pau in the search page of Google so I can always find them later on. A weird way of using Google, but it works. My documents and contracts all stored in digital form. I even have my own signature in digital form. It's all ⌘ C and ⌘V folks.

So, I thiiiiiink that I am suffering from handwriting atrophy. I'm sure you know what I mean. I'm not even sure if I feel the pen correctly whenever I find a random one in my hand. My pens actually last longer now, since I use them less. Most of them just up and dried.

Gone are the days really, when people had beautiful handwriting accomplished through YEARS of practice. My mother had beautiful handwriting and it was always so romantic-looking. Mine just looks like shit.

Oh well.

Thursday Ramblings

I'm in the office again. And I am already getting a bit bored so I decided to take a break and have some of the leftover paella we got from Alba's last night. This morning I was giving our little place a quick run through to check what I can bring to work and found a small container of oatmeal and the paella so I packed some of it for lunch.

Last night, I was at Alba's with friends: Kit, Joe, Arjay and Datu. Ces was not around because her duty schedule won't permit. Allan wasn't there for some weird reason, so I decided to take home some Paella Valenciana so he won't feel so left out. He finished half the three-person serving that night. Cool.

It's good paella, and the saffron in the rice is so perfect that you can breathe it out. I bought a lemon to squeeze over it. Yum.

Alba's is a cool restaurant, if you're ever in the area. Serves good authentic Spanish food in very good prices. The paella ranges from Php450-600 that's good for around 3 people. You can order just that, some wine and dessert, or you can go a bit more and order some of their stews and tapas, which are equally as good.

These are ramblings, you know. So I'm not really making any effort to make any sense!