...5 centimeters per second
Do you know
The speed at which cherry blossoms fall?
At what speed must I live
To be able to see you again?
The speed at which cherry blossoms fall?
At what speed must I live
To be able to see you again?
i. food "gloatage"
Sometimes, I waste perfectly good blogging opportunities just because I'm too eager to dig into my food. Case in point, tonight, John's Mom treated us to dinner at Renaissance Hotel's Emperor Court. There's something nice about being treated like a VIP in a nice restaurant. Don't get me wrong, their food is usually good even if we're dining by ourselves (like during the holiday buffet late last year) but I guess the staff make an effort to put their best foot forward when she's around.
Anyway, instead of being the snap-happy food blogger I usually am, I just ate slowly and relished every bite. I'd love to blog about it, but the fact is, with no pictures to show, it'll be a very boring post. So instead, allow me to gloat about the creamy, crispy, fleshy Hot Mango Prawn Salad, the meaty, resilient, oh so yummy Scallops in Black Bean thingie, the Oriental-style Spring Rolls with crunchy, crispy bits inside, and the steaming hot eggplants, minced pork and something else cooked in a clay pot. Obviously, I wasn't there to work---as evinced by the fact that I couldn't even bother to remember the names of everything I was stuffing in my mouth. It was soooo good. Heck, even the Yang Chow Fried Rice was priceless---it had a special distinctive smokey flavor that's achieved by only the best yang chow fried rice. Just thinking about it puts a smile on my face. And to top it off, Mango Pudding! Some days, you really just have to put that camera and pen down and stuff your face happy!
ii. heeheehee
Something happy is coming tomorrow. I don't know how I'll last until the evening. So tempted to slip out during lunch and grab happiness by the neckstrap.
iii. april 8
Yay! Zettai Kareshi! Mizushima Hiro! I can't wait.
iv. see you later, space cowboy!
FYI folks, John's leaving for an 18-month training stint with Marriot in Guam. His flight's on April 11. Don't forget to say bye-bye!
What: Blog and Soul Launch and the Second Coming of Mrs. Fields
When: August 21 (Tuesday), 7:00 PM
Where: Mrs. Fields, Manila Pavilion
Come on folks, don't we all love to eat? I signed up, keep me company, onegai?
More details at http://blogandsoul.net
ii. coffee! coffee's good with cookies
It's not a hoax, it's a Philippine BFAD finding. WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!
UPDATE:
Seeing the number of comments and reactions made me realize that it's not just me who finds it a big deal. So I devoted a blog post to it. If you guys are interested, visit:
http://www.kitchencow.com/2007/07/17/whi
Was supposed to blog about the food writing workshop I went to yesterday, complete with notes on how terrifying it was to cross that road from Quezon Circle. But a certain needy little lady's announcement that she needed to get her hair washed derailed me.
So, after hours spent letting the conditioner seep through her hair, paired with a fabric softener hair bath afterwards, Aki's hair is much softer. I still haven't totally gotten rid of the traces of box hair, but it's barely noticeable now, probably just to me who's hypercritical. I'm wondering whether I should try that clothes iron suggestion or just let it stand. Either way, I'll have to wait til next weekend. I swear, Aki-chan's taken over my life.
ii. heehee. can't wait for saturday
iii. i like geeky guys with glasses
Heehee.
iv. shuichi nakatsu, i love you!
I swore not to love Nakatsu again. I was always pro-Nakatsu in the manga, but because I know it's just setting myself up for disappointment, I told myself I wasn't allowed to be pro-Nakatsu for the drama.
I AM NAKATSU SHUICHI! I AM A HOT-BLOODED SOCCER PLAYER! I ONLY LIKE WOMEN!
Hahahaha, I love you Nakatsu! Toma as Nakatsu is made of win! Sorry Shun / Sano. But how can I not love a man who makes me laugh so much?
EDIT: Joy's comment reminded me of something...
STRIP SOCCER FTW!
Was so happy I snagged a secondhand Japanese cookbook for 50 bucks yesterday. I mean, that's just a dollar for a lovely illustrated Japanese cookbook. I bought it to get some bento ideas because I saw lots of bento pictures inside. I thought I'd be content with that.
Until I leafed through the cookbook when I got home and realized that it was a farking bento cookbook! Even the plated dishes look like stuff prepared for obento. It had interesting vegetable side ideas as well as protein ideas. Now I'm feeling frustrated since there's so much potential waiting to be unleashed in the book---if only I could understand Japanese.
Oh well. Is this a sign to try studying again? I really should go for formal classes, or at least get a tutor but I don't have the money, nor the time. Woe is me.
ii. screwey priorities
I found myself shopping for a Pullip yesterday.
It's getting scarier by the minute cause I was already browsing the threads at dollie-mixtures. And I've been corresponding with a Pullip seller with a store in Greenhills. So I'm this close to buying one, the only thing stopping me is the fact that I bought a DS Lite last month, and I've a couple of pinkies on pre-order. Oh yeah, and more importantly, the fact that my savings account is pretty much depleted.
Nina, Rida, Holly & Latte are all in stock. My first choice is Nina, but when the possibility of customizing cropped up, I began thinking twice because if I can change wigs, I might choose someone else.
Nina looks so sweet, but Rida looks promising too. Plus, her clothes are black leather, cause she's modeled after Oosaki Nana. Holly's classic although I'm worried about her hair, but then, if I can switch wigs... I'm not too hot about Latte's clothes but she has a nice face and a decent wig, and clothes area easily replacable. Then, I spotted Rovam on the soon to be restocked list and her face is simply lovely. I find her a mix of innocence and sultriness.
What am I doing choosing Pullips? That's stepping even further into the cute (and expensive) side! Waaaaah!
Ran into this fun meme at Wifely Steps and I had so much fun answering it. It's all about food! Tagging anyone who understands Tagalog on my F-list. For my non-Filipino speaking friends, let me indulge in this vernacular rambling. I had a blast doing this survey. I guess all the Filipino writing is a refreshing change from what I usually do.
Ano ang iyong almusal kanina?
Wala! Pero nag hot chocolate ako pagdating sa trabaho. Kakabili ko lang na Japanese hot chocolate, gawa ng Morinaga. Mantakin mo bang may shot daw ng Remy Martin yun? Di ko alam kung totoo, ipapabasa ko pa sa kaibigan ko ang nakasulat. Mahirap I-feature sa blog pag di ko alam ang nakasulat sa pakete.
Ikaw ay may itlog — nilagang itlog. Paano mo ito kakainin?
Purist ako. Dapat rock salt. Kakainin ko muna yung puti, pag ubos na, saka ko nanamnamin yung pula. Panalo!
Ano ang paborito mong local na junkfood?
Potato Chips na plain ng Oishi. Tsaka Tostillos ng Jack en Jill, depende sa mood. Pero ang hindi ko mahindian, yung chichacorn / chichapop / popcorn. Basta yung fluffy na mais---parang popcorn na hindi tumuloy ang pagputok. Meron sa iyong suking Jollyjeep.
Ikaw ay kinuhang TOP CHEF sa isang engrandeng pagtitipon. Ano ang iyong ihahain sa mga bisita? (Note: Ang mga pagkain na ihahain mo ay ang mga alam mong lutuin. Bawal magsinungaling)
Hindi ba pwedeng group effort? I jujudge ba ako ni Tom Colicchio dito? Kailangan bang matira ako sa competition o kahit babay na ako next round?
Appetizer: Asparagus na balot ng beef. Okay to, walang sablay, maganda pa tignan.
Soup: Bad trip. Mahina ako sa soup. Pwede bang instant soup-as na lang? Wala na, tigbak na ako agad.
Salad: Mesclun na may mango, shredded kani, grapes, jicamas (ganda pakinggan ng singkamas no? parang imforted) at ang aking sikat (sa opis) at ispeyshal na Poppy Seed Vinaigrette. Sowsi tignan, di lang nila alam, faker yan sa dali.
Kung ikaw ay makakain sa restaurant ngayon din, saang restaurant ka pupunta at bakit?
Kung iba magbabayad, sa UCC. Kung ako magbabayad, pwede na sa tabi-tabi. Kung pwedeng mag-ilusyon, sa Morimoto para at least natikman ko luto ng isang authentic na Iron Chef. O kaya kung saan man nagluluto si Tyler Florence kasi kras ko sya. Ay, runner up rin pala, titirahin ko yung mga high class na restaurant sa Roppongi. Para makakain ako ng tunay na Otoro. Siguro pwede na ako mamatay pagkatapos nun. Ay, gusto ko rin palang mag guest sa TV show na SMAP x SMAP at gusto kong kumain sa Bistro SMAP segment nila. Kasi naman si Kimura Takuya nandun. S'ya pa lang, ulam na!
Saang restaurant mong gusto makapunta, pero di ka lang nakakarating pa?
Ay mali. Ayun pala, yung ilusyon mode ko sa naunang item. Pero kung realistic, gusto kong kumain sa lahat ng masarap na restaurant sa may Quezon City dahil kalayo nun sa akin at hindi ako umaabot.
May pizza sa harap mo. Ano ang ayaw mong makitang topping sa pizza mo?
Ground beef. Di ko type ang pizza na may ground beef. Pag ala na akong makain, kakainin ko pero kung pwede sana, walang ground beef. Masaya na ako sa Mushroom and Pepperoni, Margherita at Quatro Formaggio. Minsan gumawa ako ng pizza na may kesong puti at fresh tomatoes. Haaaay, ewan ko ba kung ba't di naulit e ke-sarap n'ya. Siguro tamad talaga ako.
Ano ang madalas mong orderin sa Jollibee?
Pwedeng Chicken Joy, pwedeng Burger Steak meal, pwedeng Palabok. Hindi ako kumakain ng hamburger sa Jollibee (yung sandwich, burger steak okay pa ako). Mabibilang sa isang kamay ko kung ilan beses ako kumain ng Jollibee yumburger sa buhay ko. Ay, pero ang super miss na miss na miss ko na e yung Chunky Chicken Sandwich ng Jollibee. Sheht. Luma ang Chicken Mayo sandwich ng Delifrance sa sandwich ng ating friend na si Jolliee.
Paano magluto ng Sinigang? Marunong ka ba?
Oo naman. Ang linaw linaw ng nakasulat sa likod ng Knorr Sinigang Mix e. :P
Ikaw ay may fried chicken sa harap mo. Ano ang dapat niyang kapartner para masarap ang kain?
Depende sa fried chicken. Kung Max, dapat Jufran. Kung Jollibee, dapat gravy. McDo hindi ko pinapatulan manok nila. Pwera nuggets. Kung nuggets BBQ sauce. Kung Chicken fingers gusto ko honey mustard. Kung yung old-fashioned Fried Chicken na luto ng lola ko (sumalangit nawa) walang sauce. Ganon s'ya kasarap magluto.
Kumakain ka ba ng dinuguan? Alam mo ba kung saan ito gawa?
Oo, pero nasa kolehiyo na ako natutong kumain ng dinuguan. Sarap, lalo na kung may puto. Bobo ko talaga, sarap mag dinuguan ng lola ko hindi ako kumakain nung bata ako. Pinsan kong half-Pinoy lang at laki sa States, kumakain ng sabaw ng dinuguan. Sarap na sarap pa s'ya sa chocolate stew. Syempre hindi namin makayanang sabihin kung ano yung "chocolate" sa chocolate stew n'ya.
ii. this is why the nds rocks
A beauty regimen game on the NDS? What will Nintendo think of next? First there was that Cooking Navigator--an interactive cooking guide / cookbook, now a Beauty Navigator.
Quoted from a news feed:
"Dream Skincare" is part of recent efforts by Nintendo Co. to attract newcomers to gaming. Until recently, the gaming crowd has largely been young men fond of shooting and sports games.
Players input their daily body temperature and weight by marking a graph that shows up on the touch panel, according to Konami Corp. The game, which Konami describes as "beauty navigation software," asks questions that the player answers such as skin tone and smoothness, as well as exposure to sunlight and hours of sleep. Advice on a daily regimen for healthy skin pops up on the screen, including directions to drink more water, or to eat apples and ginger, food that had a reputation for warming up the body.
Nintendo DS Lite, you rock my world!
(Read more about Dream Skincare at here.)
It's Bravo TV's Top Chef. Started downloading the first season last Saturday, then proceeded to watch each episode—thank you file priority settings—as soon as I grabbed it. Finished downloading the season torrent last night so we watched the last few, minus the last episode til the wee hours this morning.
My opinions so far? It would be difficult watching the last episode tonight. I have to say bye-bye to my favorite chefs. My favorite would have to be Lee Anne. She's someone I can imagine having fun cooking with. I love Harold of course; he's so well-mannered, especially for a reality TV contestant. I can't help but squeal, "Look! It's Sylar and he's cooking! Brains, give him brains," during various parts of the show.
I respect Tiffani for her skills, even if everyone's slamming her for being a bitch. Despite the general hatred for her, I figure a lot of it has to do with working in close quarters and selective editing. Come on, I'm not an idiot, I know reality tv is far from reality. And surprise, I love Stephen. He's an arrogant windbag but I find him an interesting character. And I love his plating skills. Plus points for him in the reunion episode.
Dave the crybaby, I absolutely hate. He's so emo. Come on, I know cooking is about passion and emotions, but crying over every single effing thing? He lets his emotions get way too much in the way. I was very disappointed when he got way far into the competition, especially over someone who I thought was more deserving.
While I know how it's going to end, I'm still looking forward to the finale tonight. I guess this means I have to start downloading season 2, no?
i. fall dorama line-up
And the squeeing can be heard from miles away! I've had a love-hate relationship with the manga, Hanazakari no Kimitachi E. When I first started reading it, it was hard keeping up because I had to get it from IRC. For some reason, it wasn't listed in the mangascan release directory I used to frequent so getting new releases from TFT was a hit and miss affair. But it involved cross-dressing so it was a must read. I remember fighting with tsumenki over who Ashiya should end up with. She was always pro-Sano. Since I was always gung-ho for the loud and brash type, it was always Nakatsu for me.
( Rambly back story )
But now? I'm thinking twice about watching it because...OGURI SHUN's playing Sano in the J-dorama version! We've all seen how he did a super cute-lovable-mischievous-reliable Rui in Hanadan. Physically speaking, Shun's not my type, but with his acting skills, I'm all ready to fall in love with his Sano. Added bonus, Horikita Maki is playing Ashiya. Yes, it's Nobuta from Nobuta wo Produce (Akira x Nobuta 4evah!) She's guaranteed cutes, can act, and I so can't wait to see her play tomboy. Oh fall season dorama, why do you feel so far away?
Thanks nagi-sama for the heads-up!.
ii. the fastest way to kao-chan's heart
Okay, this is late news so it's not news but it's new to me. So there. Anyway, the season's drawing to a close but it was only last week that I found out about Bambino! What about it? It starts Matsumoto Jun. And he cooks!
Need I say more?
iii. still teary eyed
Two things made me cry this morning:
- Rabucon 8. Whether it's the manga, movie, or anime, that particular class trip scene always breaks my heart. If you've seen it, you'll know what I'm talking about.
- Diana Wynne Jones' The Girl Who Loved the Sun. Such a pretty pretty story. I think this is the first time I cried reading one of her stories. They're always satisfying, but they never drive me to tears, just heights of fangirlness. This one however, wham bam!
iv. themed blog #2 in the works
I've been thinking about building another blog, this time for my pinkies. kitchen cow has taught me how much fun it is to keep a themed blog and how wonderful wordpress is. I doubt a Pinky-focused blog will get as much hits as kitchen cow (come on, everyone loves food!) but the possibilities I can explore with it is thrilling me.
Course, I promised myself that no work on said pinky blog can begin until I finish all the needed updates for kitchen cow (still 80 old entries need to be cleaned up: trans. to remove lj formatting).
Anyway, I'm stumped for a name. I haven't decided whether I'll be getting a full domain, or whether I'll just subdomain on kitchencow (although that means I'll have to get a larger bandwidth plan), but still. Any suggestions for a name?
v. last night, we dined swell!
Last night, we finally had our long-awaited Greek Foodfest at Naomi and Rae's. The second of what we hope will be a regular cooking challenge event, this one is an even bigger success than the first one because we dared venture into unknown territory: Greek Cuisine! Recap will be done later today, I still have to sift through my camera, as well as decide which pics I'm going to use for kitchen cow and which are for private f-list viewing only. Still, it was a lovely day so I had to mention it already.
Note: Hehe, Julls must be so proud of me. Admittedly, this post is influenced by her usual date recaps.
( Saturday, Saturday! Lalalalalalalala! )
ii. rabucon random thought
Isn't Lovely Complex a comedy? Then why am I crying?
iii. the tears don't stop
And I thought Rabucon was the tearjerker. Noooo. I had to watch the last two episodes of Ugly Betty, just to close the season. Gyeaaaaaaaah! How do they expect us to wait for Season 2?
iv. kitchen success!
I made Korokke! That's Japanese-style beef croquettes. Sure, I can always buy at Hatchin---in fact, I still have half a dozen cream korokke in the freezer---but the fact was, I defrosted ground beef and I didn't know what to do with it. I figured it was time for an experiment. What a success it was! Next time, I'm going to go for Cream Korokke :D Oh, and if anybody wants to try it out as well, I photo-documented it and put it up at kitchencow.
I feel so disgusted with myself whenever I realize how much I've spent on groceries these past two days. Yesterday, I spent a substantial sum at South Supermarket on what I called "bento supplies." I argue with myself that buying groceries and packing lunch assured that I'd save money because whenever I eat out at work, I'm sure to spend at least 100PHP on food. A lot of times, that doesn't even include drinks.
But who am I kidding? Where does a box of Cocoa Crispies fit in? Nor that big bag of Cheddar and Sour Cream Ruffles? Still, I reassured myself, this will last me for a week at least. And in fairness, I did buy ingredients like ground beef (keftedes and hamburgers), slices of sirloin (fajitas or kalbi maybe?), eggplant (eggplant and hummus panini!), bean sprouts (korean barbeque siding?) and quail eggs (bring on the cute faces!)
Still, today, I ended up dragging my mom to the Japanese grocery, Hatchin. I bought stuff I had no immediate use for like sushizu, naruto-maki and even some denbu oburo. Course, I piled my basket high with my favorite cream koroke and some takoyaki. What made our little expedition special was the fact that I managed to nab some Men's Pocky (best Pocky ever!) and Gohan Desu Yo! *rubs hands with glee* I'm exceptionally proud about the Gohan Desu Yo! because no one told me that I grabbed the right product. I just counted the hiragana characters and noted the ! at the end. The only character I noticed was the N. I did think Momoya sounded familiar (flashback to Yakitate! Japan Momoya Gohan Desu Yo! guy guest appearance) so it was a total leap of faith. You can imagine my sigh of relief when the counter girl zapped it with the counter laser thingie and the POS identified it as GOHANDESUYO. No wonder a salesperson I asked had no idea what I was looking for. ^_^;; Well, either they knew it as something else or my Japanese pronounciation is truly atrocious.
Not content with the lavish expenditure, we then proceeded to Makati Supermarket Alabang to buy Kewpie Mayo and some nori. But when have I ever entered a supermarket and not come out with more than what I intended to buy? Of course I couldn't let me disappoint my disappointing self. I left the store with a box of instant UCC Coffee (damn you, UCC Cafe Terraces!), Korean barbecue style chicken, and chicken breast fillets.
So now, we're stuck with a stuffed freezer, a thin wallet, and the serious need to bento.
ii. now i'm really disgusted
I was very generous with giving GMA7 the benefit of the doubt with their recent prime time programming. While Asian Treasures reeked of an Indiana Jones and Lara Croft crossover fanfic, Super Twins stank like a fugly Sailormoon rip-off, and of course the supposedly "based on the original French story" Lupin, I refrained from berating them for the lack of creativity. Even if the Super Twins costume was waaaaay fugly. Heck, even with the pending Shaider remake, I kept mum.
But Angel Locsin as MARIMAR? COME ON! Why would anyone even want to watch a Marimar remake? It's not like we can expect them to do to Marimar what ABC did to Betty La Fea! And come on?! Marimar? With the talking dog? The only thing that would make me buy it is if Michael V was cast in the show. TO DO ALL THE ROLES.
Come on GMA. You can do better. Please don't devolve back to the day when you'd rip off Hollywood flicks like Only You (no exag, I really remember this) for your Sunday Telesine.
iii. purty office
We had our office blessed today. Yay! Purty purty office, bedecked with nice glass panel treatment by the superfantabulous Mike Calvan. But of course, the best office decoration is still our newest, most beloved office mate:
iv. ghey lawyerly love
Wright.
I must say, I hadn't expected
to meet you again after all
these years.
However.
In retrospect, it would have
been better had we not met.
Thanks to you, I am saddled
with unnecessary... feelings.
Yay for ghey laywers! Phoenix x Edgey: OTP! Bwahahahahahahaa!
Disclaimer: This apparent appreciation for BL is purely superficial. Sorry to disappoint you khursten, rotch. The thought of watching BL pr0n still makes me-----*shudders*
v. where oh where is my q vivi?
Choro Q has been in transit for 35 days now. I'm starting to get worried. She's not just a toy. I named her already, therefore, she's part of family. :( Vivi! Where are you?
Yay! Tita Lynn, my Aunt from Daly City called me up at work today. She was calling me a few days ago but I was asleep and missed it. Apparently, she was calling to tell me that she bought me bento stuff from Daiso! Yay! She has no idea what some of the items were but they were tiny and cute and she bet they were for bento so she grabbed them. She also bought me a couple of boxes. I can't wait to see what they're like.
ii. i want my burger!
Lesson learned: Check your take-out before leaving the store premises. I learned this the hard way after buying a Big Bacon Mushroom Melt Combo at Wendy's today. Officemate Cla and I decided to buy food at Greenbelt. A 5-minute walk from the office, it's still tiring when it's high noon. Still, I figured, it was worth it; a fresh, hot, cheesy burger. My mouth was practically salivating at the thought of biting into my burger, so my frustration was palpable when I unwrapped my burger and discovered a Big Classic instead. I mean, a Big Classic had onions and a tomato. Plus ketchup. Bleah! I was supposed to get crisp bacon, mushrooms and melty melty cheese. Proof that I take my food seriously: I walked back. To Greenbelt. Under the sun, in summer. To get what was rightfully mine!
Admittedly, a part of me wanted to just settle for what I was given, but the injustice! My order was a couple of pesos more expensive, plus the satisfaction it would've given me was priceless. And so right, I was. <3 <3 <3
iii. friday, friday! la-la-la-la
I loooove Fridays. Nothing beats the thought of a weekend at hand. Especially with this weekend's grand plans. Bwahahahahahahahahahaha! I love you weekend!
Anyway, I ran across this line so I just had to post it:
In the kitchen on those mornings, Papa made the accordion live. I guess it makes sense, when you really think about it.
How do you tell if something's alive?
You check for breathing.
For some reason, that snippet from The Book Thief made me stop. I guess it struck a chord in me; what though, I'm not quite sure. All I know is, after reading it, I knew I had to share it with you guys.
Anyway, the weekend's coming up soon. Hope I have more time to read up on what's going on in everyone else's lives :D
ps.
Have I mentioned how I love Mini-Stop's Adobo Samurice? It's not fantastically good onigiri; I've made better, but getting decent onigiri from the store a few steps away (one I fondly call "the work pantry") tickles me pink.
When we were still at our old office, we regularly bought refreshments and other necessities at 7-11 because there was one at the ground floor of our building. I was too lazy to go to Mini-stop because it was a longer walk; the only time I'd go there was when I wanted to eat their chicken. So imagine my surprise when I stepped inside a Mini-stop last Monday and discovered that they sold ONIGIRI!
Yes, onigiri, being sold in local convenience stores! They're sold in three flavors: adobo, ham (looks suspiciously like spam) and BBQ chicken I think. Unlike the usual onigiri which has its meat stuffed, hidden in the centers, these "samurice" fillings were mixed in liberally, looking like fried rice onigiri. Understandably so, I don't think the average pinoy can grasp the idea of eating rice without ulam (aka. viand / main dish). I remember showing someone a photo of a real cute animal shaped onigiri and his reaction was, "Ano naman maganda d'yan, wala siyang ulam?" (What's so good about it, she doesn't have a viand?) I guess putting the meat bits where they can be seen was a way of adapting the traditional Japanese treat into something more acceptable to the Filipino palate.
I haven't tried it yet, but admittedly, it's arousing my interest. Heck, I won't be blogging about it if I weren't, right? Cla and I are interested in trying it out, thinking we'd split one. I'm adventurous, but honestly, the samurice scares me. Probably because I know what onigiri's supposed to be like and I don't want to ruin the happy love-love feeling I have for it.
ii. the work sitch
I have my own computer now! A new laptop came in today, a PC based one. They have promised to get me a macbook eventually but right now we have to watch our finances so a PC system will have to do. Not that I mind, really. I mean, I've been working with PCs for longer than I care to recall, and while macs are love, at the end of the day, I still go home to Tsukiko (my desktop PC set-up).
I'm still quite excited, while her specs are lower than Tsuki's, she'll do fine, methinks. This isn't the first time I was assigned a laptop for work; the first time was when I was new to Blue Bottle, but technically, it wasn't mine to do with as I please. I couldn't even bring it out of the office. This one though, I'm made to understand was so we could be mobile. Which translates to permission for me to bring it around. I mean, if it weren't, why the heck did they get a laptop when a desktop PC would've been much much cheaper, right?
So now, I'm searching for a name. I'm thinking Hiko for Little Sun (since I use her mainly during the day) to go with Tsukiko's Little Moon (for my night time and weekend computer use). Of course, my minimal understanding of Japanese (limited to the words kawaii, konnichiwa, sukebe, and most food names) could be wrong so I'm not to be trusted. Will search for a name when I get home. While we all have computers now, our network connection isn't up yet so surfing is done out of the office.
Ah, the best laid plans of mice and cows. I guess a part of me is feeling the pressure of making bento #100 the best evah! Or at least just produce something really cute. Anyway, I put it off for two days, but I figured it would be good to finally do it today to end the week on an upbeat note.
So, for once, I did advanced preparations last night. I defrosted then marinated the chicken. I hardboiled an egg. I even cleaned out the rice cooker so it'll be good to go in the morning.
Gaaaaaah. I woke up at 7:30. I needed to be at work by 9. Lovely.
Damn you Conan O' Brien for making me stay up. I shall begin ignoring you next week.
ii. cable stuff
Incidentally, our local cable company finally started carrying Etc. One day I was flipping through the channels and I suddenly see Jay Leno. Not having Etc was always one of my frustrations, since a lot of my friends would mention watching shows on that channel. We had a lot of nice channels but other than Animax while cleaning house on weekends, I didn't watch much since I catch most of the stuff I do want to watch on torrents.
Now, I have some other channel to serve as background noise for when I putter around the house. Yay for Horny Manatees!
iii. icon meme
Meme taken from
![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small}
miss_dian.Reply to this post, and I will tell you my favorite icon of yours. Then post this to your own journal using your own favorite icon. Repost it if you want, if not just let me have fun looking through your icons to tell you my favorite(s)
If you tell me which icon of mine you like best, that'll be nice too! :)
iv. because i adore neil gaiman, i'm editing this post
...to add that thing in his latest journal entry.
I'd like to ask a small favour of those of you who have read down this far. Would anyone reading this, anyone with a blog or a website that is, mind linking to the last post -- http://www.neilgaiman.com/journal/2
And sshhh, don't anyone tell him. I want it to be a surprise.
This one's for Morpheus, Thessaly, Yvainne, Tristan Thorne, and green mouse flavored ice cream. Because you have made a difference in my life.
Penn Jillette
Just got in today, after spending the day at my cousin's house. His parents flew in from SF, bringing shyteloads of goodies so I'm pretty happy. The only thing I asked them to bring me was Oberto Beef Jerky. I love it so, but it's either unavailable here or too expensive. Still, aside from that, they brought home loads of plain Hershey's, Andes Creme de Menthes, and various potato chips.
You can just imagine how much of a hurdle it will be to cut back on food. Especially since we will be spending lots of time together, and if there's one thing my Kapampangan family loves doing, it's eating. >_<
ii. pinky fun
I also spent a few hours this afternoon doing Pinky set-ups among the greenery at my cousin's. The theme was Samurai drama, so you can just imagine how fun it was. Will get the images from my camera after I update my LJ. Can't wait though.
iii. twilight
To the curious people on my flist (leki, lethologica, and alexis) I really recommend picking up Twilight. It's not literature, but it's not mere brainless fluff. And it rises head and shoulders over other Vampire fiction targeted at teens like stuff by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes. I really enjoyed reading it, I mean, I had to order my own copy immediately. But please don't let my opinions color yours too much; the last thing I want to do is to turn the book into something overrated.
About buying a copy locally, that might pose a problem. It's currently not available at Powerbooks and it seems that Fully Booked is down to its last few copies. New Moon, the sequel is also out of stock now. I had to order my copies from Amazon, lest I change my mind about returning Chris' copy.
Don't let the fact that it's a series turn you off. You can read volume 1 as a standalone, as it's written with an okay ending, and you can leave it at that. Knowing Edward though, I find it hard that anyone can resist his charms. I know I wasn't, and fidgeted for days on end, trying to locate a copy of New Moon. I pestered Fully Booked's people just to find a copy, which unfortunately wasn't successful.
Good thing timing was on my side, another Aunt's coming home on Feb. 2 and Twilight and New Moon's on its way to her, along with my last 2 volumes of W-Juliet. Yes, I'll probably be hiding under a rock the weekend of Feb 3-4.
iv. back to work!
Back to work tomorrow. I honestly have no idea how I'll concentrate, knowing that Heroes 12 will be waiting for me. I'm downloading it now and crossing my fingers it'll be done when I wake up. So hard going back to work after a leisurely day. Really tempted to call in sick, but then, we all know how fake that would be, hahaha! Truthfully, if I'd only known that our planned location shoot wouldn't push through this week, I would've filed for a longer vacation. But as it is, I have stuff due tomorrow so might as well go back.
Durn. Must raid freezer for bento-possibilities. At least that will cheer me up tomorrow.
v. major milestone
And how could I forget! I drove solo for the first time today. From our house to my cousin's at Verdana. Early this morning. YAY! So proud of myself. I realize I'm a much more careful driver when I'm going solo. Even if I was swaying my head a bit to Justin Timberlake (blame the radio).
Can't wait for longer trips.
It all boiled down to the Is it Time to Eat, Yet? 1 and the Our Lunch Box. Cuteness-wise, I wanted the teeny tiny bento replicas. Practicality-wise, the kitchen assortment was a better bargain since it had food, cooking utensils, even dishwashing liquid! So to end the tie, I had my mom decide, since, well, it was her Christmas gift to me anyway.
So, Is it Time to Eat, Yet? 1 WINS! I should've known, my mom was always nuts about kitchen utensils. ^_^;;
Now I'm trying to decide whether I should order Our Lunch Box myself, hahahaha.
ii. crazy over couscous
Curiosity pays, sometimes. Last night, my mom and I checked out that new Mediterranean resto at Alabang Town Center, aptly called Cafe Mediterranean. If I'm not mistaken, they also have a branch at Greenbelt, the old wing, along D' Original Jamaican Patty store. Still, we've never eaten there, so eating at their ATC branch was a new experience.
We ordered some hummus off the bat, since I love it so. And it was a good choice, since their hummus is really good. For the main course, my mom got some Moroccan fish served with buttered rice. I got some beef kebabs. After seeing coucous a lot of times on the menu at <a href="http://community.livejournal.com/bentolunch> bentolunch</a>, I decided to go and order some with my kebabs. And it was one thing that wowed me. The couscous. It was absofarkingtasticalutely good! It had this super enjoyable texture; it reminded me of fish roe and kiwi fruit, the way it seemed to explode in my mouth. The kebabs was a little dry, probably because they're still on their soft opening run, so I forgave them. But it was all because their hummus and couscous made me happy. Next goal: Learn to make hummus and find a local store that sells couscous. Easy enough goals, right? :D
So stoopid. I wrote a lengthy, multipart LJ post earlier today. Well, it's lengthy because it's full of memes I've been putting off but still, it was a fun post, especially because it had that "fictional character you want to screw around with" meme. Now I can't post it because I left the file at work. :(
Oh well, at least I remembered to bring my take-home work. Maybe I should start writing. Oh lookie. Manga download's finished. Or maybe I won't start.
ii. i miss bento
I absolutely really truly miss preparing bento boxed lunches. This is the first time in weeks I went grocery shopping and I was going nuts buying chicken, beef, pork, and veggies. All in miniscule portions of course, ("Miss, give me 2 bags of ground chicken, just 100grams each please.")
I'm not sure I can still cut it making quick bentos in the morning but hey, I'm up to the challenge. I mean, today, I packed lunch, and I made a mistake choosing which box to use. I ended up with the sauce from corned beef hash on my jeans. Good thing it was only a small spill, so I was able to scrub it out with a wet wipe.
If only I had my camera back. Well, at least it's been 10 days. The people at the service center told me 14 days, tops. There's nothing like vanity to push me in the mornings.
iii. i'm a sappy girl
Okay, call me a little freak, but I find love stories in the weirdest places. I'm such a sucker for them, hehe. Today, I was reading volumes 17-21 of 20th Century Boys. The prospect of the upcoming movie got me excited again, so I trawled the net for torrents and it worked. But I'm digressing. Back to the story, so I was reading it. It's a story full of convoluted plots, maniacal masterminds, doomsday scenarios, and downtrodden citizens. Instead of that though, the happiest part for me was when I ran into a chapter where Yukiji was reminiscing about Kenji. Bwahahahahaha, I got teary-eyed at the prospective match up. Hwehwe. I'm so corny. ^_^;;
iv. video watching
I've been watching a handful of videos of late, mostly TV series episodes. Been watching Ugly Betty, then started on Heroes the past weekend. But the thing I've been religiously watching is Rurouni Kenshin. I'm up to the Kyoto Arc now, and Kenshin's just about to step into the Aoshi room. Oh joy.
Lately, I've been thinking of downgrading my DSL connection to a cheaper plan; one that's half the price. While fast internet is really nice, especially when it comes to downloads, sometimes I wonder whether it's really cost-efficient.
Today however, all I can say is, MY DSL R0xx0rS! The latest Nodame episode in 2 hours and a half? Bring it on! May not be a big deal for people elsewhere, but in the Philippines, upwards of 90kB/s is lurf. And to think I just finished watching Nodame 6 subbed too. Sigh. Sometimes life can be nice to me too.
ii. and more thanks for john's birthday gift
John got me a really really nice Japanese cookbook / encyclopedia of sorts for my birthday. He got me this book: Japanese food and cooking, something I really really wanted the first time I laid eyes on it.
I've been reading it the past few days, a chapter or two at a time. Today, I read up on noodles. And only now did I learn that I have to wash the starch off Zarusoba, if I intend to serve it cold. So I tried it this time and the results wowwed me. The simple act of washing the noodles made a really big difference. Looks like I'll start enjoying zarusoba more often now.
Now if only I can start bento-ing again.
iii. camera lust
Been staring at online pics of the Canon EOS 400D / Digital Rebel XTi and drooling. Yes, yes. There are better cameras, I'm sure. But right now, it feels attainable for me. Just a few months of hardcore saving, and I think I can buy a kit. Although that means I'll have to forego my planned DS Lite purchase but then, a new camera looks more practical.
Wish me luck!
iv. and because i'm a geek
I'm quoting Judy Sibayan, one of my Com-Arts professors from college on this. I'm a geek. And because I am, I signed up on Shelfari. It's an online bookshelf listing which in a few words is friendster for libraries. Well, that's what it appears to be for me, and while I haven't explored it much, I wouldn't be surprised if that summarizes the service. I created an account with the username kaoko, if you guys are interested in jumping in, or already have accounts, do invite me. :D
v. dollies
My mom encountered Pullips / Blythes for the first time. Remembering my Pinkies, she got some info and the URL from the doll seller she saw at a local fair, then led me to the site. She found the Pullips really cute, and was even suggesting getting me one for my birthday. Then I showed her what I really would like having. I took her to the Dream of Doll site, and she promptly fell in love.
Now we share the same dream. To win the lottery, so we'll have money to waste. Then buy DOD Shall. Hehehe. Like daughter, like mother, huh?
Pinkies are ebil. I was going through the the hlj site and the words November restock written with Sitting Yukata pinky was winking seductively at me. And to think I haven't even paid for Mayura yet. Pinkies, together with a credit card, is truly a thing of evil. Evil along the lines of "kotatsu are the source of evil" to quote Chiaki-sama (Nodame Cantabile reference. Doesn't that sound absolutely interesting?).
Must control self. Must not click buy button. Kao, just because you have cash, doesn't mean you must spend it. Think of future savings. Think of new camera. Think of Coral Pink DS Lite with Cooking Mama & Harvest Moon!
ii. i want to learn nihonggo
You know you're desperate to watch a dorama / anime when you watch it unsubbed and you have 0% Japanese comprehension. The lure of Chiaki-sama was that great that I watched Nodame Cantabile episode 4 without subs. Granted, I still had an idea what was going on because I read the manga. But man, it takes sheer fangirl powers to sit through the thing with only .001% comprehension. The only words I could pick out were ore, atashi, watashitachi, and hajime. Oh yeah. And of course, Nodame's lovely GYABOOO! at the end. Wish I had time to pimp this series more.
jov, ubechan and Nao-chan, never fear. I shall share the Chiaki-sama love. iii. happiness is a mc donald's strawberry milkshake
For two days now,
24fps and I have been trooping off to Mc Donald's Jaka in the middle of the work day to grab milkshakes and fries. We were disappointed yesterday when they ran out of strawberry milkshakes--we had to grab chocolate shakes instead--but today was sheer straw-ber-ry (pronounced Rob-style: strow-ber-y, accent on ber) satisfaction. Of course, I felt guilty, especially when the elevator doors mirrored my thighs when we were on the way back, but sometimes, you just have to throw caution to the wind and forget repercussions. Happiness in a cup. I'll take it anytime!And so I clicked this youtube link about sushi. Since I was surfing other sites as well, I forgot what the link exactly was about, other than, well, sushi. So when I remembered, I took the video at face value. It was a short clip about the tradition involved in eating sushi.
At first, I was all, "Kewl, I never knew that!" Until it got sillier and sillier, then I remembered. It was a gag video about sushi. Du-oh! *Hits head on table*
Come on, share in the silliness.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0b75cl4-q
And while we're at it, enjoy this as well!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZtgblmR0
ii. ugliness can rule!
Okay. Confession time. Do you guys remember this cheesy Colombian telenovela broadcast on GMA7 a few years back? It involved a dowdy, manang-type girl who works for a flashy fashion mag? Yep, Betty La Fea. Well, I used to watch it. And enjoyed it.
Well, I just heard from
24fps that it was bought by ABC and is now a US-produced (by Salma Hayek even!) comedy series. Must I say I'm very excited and all. Aside from cross-dressing plots, Cinderella transformation stories are something I really really enjoy. Hehe, I guess I'm still on the look-out for a fairy godmother myself.More info linkies here!
http://abc.go.com/primetime/uglybetty/in
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ugly_Betty
iii. pesto WHAT?
I love food. Anyone who's known me for a reasonable amount of time knows that. Aside from eating, I'm never one to pass up on a food adventure, even if it looks weird. I mean, I've eaten snails, frog legs, and raw sea critters. Dare me, and down the gullet it goes.
So when a friend told me about how good pesto-flavored popcorn is, I bought a tub despite my initial reservations. I love pesto and I liked the plain favored variety of that particular popcorn brand, so I gleefully tore into the tub.
It was...interesting to say the least. I decided it was an acquired taste then offered it around the office. Majority who tried it shared the same opinion. "It's weird," coupled with, "No thanks," when I offered them some more.
That was yesterday. A day later, I still haven't acquired a taste for it. Lesson learned, when it sounds, WTF? keep away.
