Grey's Anatomy - Meredith Grey Character

As I am writing this blog, when I should be doing my homework, I was watching the re-runs of Grey's Anatomy.

http://static.greysanatomyinsider.com/images/gallery/lol-moment_520x334.jpg

Listening to the dialog of Meredith Grey character, I noticed that she has a tendency of repeating herself, "Take me, choose me", "choose me'. She lost her impact on me, I noticed it.

Oh, well. What do you think?

I Scream for Ice Cream

There is an ice cream parlor in Elmwood District in Oakland that is always filled with patrons, no matter what time pass by that place.

I don't really know what the draw is, it can't be any different from any other ice cream places around but this is wonder.  Care to identify for me?

Expiration Date

I know I talked about this before, expiration date--milk cartons, tickets, relationships. This time it is about life, life has a tendency of giving up on us. People who are important to us, people we know or know of. Life passing us by.

This certainly reminded me of my own vulnerability, that nothing is permanent. The previous months we have several politicians, entertainment personalities, and many others who are in the media. Then there are the ones who are close to us.

My mom's friend passed, the CEO of my company, the guy that would have been--all of cancer. It is really sad, that the world is inundated with this big, black word, CANCER, it seems to be the norm and being healthy is the anomaly. I don't know if technology is so advanced that we are discovering all these illneses or the technology is so vast that it is causing these.

Whatever it is, I feel that we should look at life differently, that we should savor life more. Savoring life is not getting drugged and being worldly, it is more of appreciating what is around us. Showing more compassion, by doing so, not being judgmental about it.

Ah, it is sad.

Beautiful Images of the Philippines..

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="542" caption="Pahiyas images from http://my_sarisari_store.typepad.com/"][/caption]

 Here's food art, before there is such a thing. This event in the Philippines is inspired by a Catholic (note Catholic) saint during the Spanish regime. The website noted that it is by way of Mexico, no wonder there is a similarity in the culture.

Click on the image to get to the photographer's website.  The pictures are awesome, I am inspired.

Enjoy. Note: I did send the photographer an email asking for permission to link to his pix, but it bounced.

In the cube farm

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="430" caption="from http://www.sitelead.com/ permission pending"][/caption]

As I said before, I have been working like crazy these past months, but look at me; I am unwinding with a puter. Despite that it is a little sad, because we had a few folks who left the firm, voluntary and involuntary, and another one who went to Lordy-that’s another post.

So yes, we had a few separations from the firm this month; three left of their own accord-one to work with the competition and the two to set up their consulting firm, the last and the youngest was a victim of this economy. Because he didn’t have that much experience, he didn’t have that expertise to work on other projects in other locations without a mentor.

The first left after almost 20 years of service, he grew up with the firm from one office to another until he landed in the Bay Area and eventually left. He was a little jaded with the way that the office is heading, not realizing that it is reaction to the evolving market. He asked me, what he needs to change about the way he was at work.  Note that technical people have a different way of looking at things; they are pretty driven into getting the results, expecting more grey matter and less of the people-y issues.

Told him that maybe, it is better to relate more to people, compassion, and respect are important, a happy employee, makes a happy worker therefore a better worker. He realized that we do think alike, told him that it is generational ha ha ha.  He was having mixed feelings not wanting to leave, with the idea that he is leaving his family.

The two who were going to set up shop with their names on the letterhead was a little apprehensive and excited about what lies ahead. They were also sorry to leave-when the bossman said, “it’s business as usual and the two week notice is waived”, they didn’t feel so bad after that. I reacted a little negatively, I would have wanted him to be a little gooey, but no he was worried am sure of the revenue, they were 100% billable, ha ha.

Then the last one sits next to me, we review the day’s events was telling him to hang in there, it will get better.  It didn’t, then, he had to go. He can say, “Better to have it happen, early on in my career.”

Oh, there is another one, a satellite in the North Bay closed, the technical folks can telework but the admin staff has to go and she was even working part time.

I am again being reminded that no matter how much we prepare for tomorrow, His will shall prepare. See, you may have a lot of money in the bank at the wrong turn of the economy it will be gone.

Oh gee, I am just babbling here without a point a forced clobut sing.

Collision Zone Part II

A few months back, we figured in a car accident, I have not even completed my insurance claim. The offending car was in a hurry he thought, if he sped up he will make is turn without hitting us. All that to apparently get to a ballgame. We were bruised my friend’s car was totaled, guess it is now with the other clunkers in car heaven.

We were going to a church meeting and I was carrying a cup of diet coke and a box of donuts, the air bag went off and we were bruised, T who was driving got the cool end of it with a sling and something for her finger. L and her friend had to go for chiropractic sessions. My eyeglasses were broken and grazed my skin, bruised from the air bag impact, and bones aiming to dislodge. I didn’t see my life flash before me, so we were okay. Certain that Lordy is always there protecting us.

Anyway, I figured Lordy wanted us to stop the driver from causing a bigger mess on the road. You know what he said, the driver I mean? He said that it’s normal, that’s what insurances are for. How cold is that? I said, he probably didn’t go to church, and a Sunday at that! Isn’t that disturbing?
The bummer was having to wait for too long to get T checked, I didn’t opt for the ER check, went to my doctor instead for a clean bill of health. It was a drag indeed, but we were able to hang out with another friend who is grieving over the loss of her Mom. L’s friend went ahead with her afternoon tap dance performance.

What’s the point in all these? A reminder that we should be grateful for our lives, that we should be content with what we have for it can disappear in a wink. Most of all a testimony to His greatness that he is always there to protect.

Amen?

Collission zone..

Life is so complex that past and present collide making the future blurry, filled with uncertainty. He was bullied as a kid, even as a grown up, for reasons unknown, maybe he is too gentle for his own good. He does not retaliate, he would have been happy hiding behind me, willing for me to fight his battles. He would have been happy with that, content not following a dream, his dreams would be anchored on mine. I left and it shattered everything, it took him a while to recover, to find his bearings, and realized that he has a life to live. I wondered was he too sheltered, we all were, but behind those closeted existence are darkness of infidelity causing pain a deep wrenching of the heart building distrust and agony. I questioned the reason for that, how can rules be laid down and be disregarded, irreverently neglected to follow a darker life. There is always a cause and effect, I used to say, "read, you will find your answers only through discovery." Now, I say, "have you talked to Lordy about it?"

On the one hand, he didn't get as much discipline as the others, he was the baby, the last born. Life was a little better, as a child he would give in tantrums, to fit of anger. I sensed a tendency to hardhandedness. Unlike his gentle brother, he is more head on, less patient. His uncaring ways led to misguided existence -- married or were they? because of a child, a relationship borne out of necessity, presumably to correct a wrong. Such an overlap didn't change anything but rather put them in a quicksand of misery. Frustrated attempts to change put them in deeper pain, something that I don't have a solution for, but to tell Lordy about it. I reckon maybe you need to pray more, it was never meant to be your battle alone. Lordy is with you just listen to what He is saying.

Whoa, life is indeed so complex. Sometimes I'm not sure why they tell me all this, validation? approval? or they want me to tell Lordy for them, like am the right agent or not :). She left her husbad and children to go to a foreign land for a better future for her children. So that they won't have the kind of life that she had. With nothing but her bravura, she embarked and halfway succeeded. But she fell in love with someone that she shouldn't and had to marry another, keeping her lover on the side. She thinks she is handling it all pretty cool, what is happiness anyway, she countered. I dared say to her that at this point it is exciting but once the novelty is gone, she should be ready to deal with the guilt, the repercussions of emotional entanglement, the questioning look of her innocent children.

Faith interrupted..

I have been so busy with work these past weeks or has it been months, project after project, I am never really able to dwell on things, questions unanswered burning in my head.  What I managed to do was separate my questions from affecting my faith that would have caused it to erode into an unbelievable pit of darkness.

Being a recipient of unexpected meanness, unexpected in the sense that the person dispensing it should be dispensing something more soulful than that.  Words uttered that is embarassing to be repeated even to vent about. I accepted and with head vowed tried to recall that humility is a value that we learned and try to practice as a good human being, as children of God.  But I will be pretentious if I say that I wasn't affected, that I wasn't hurt, so I stayed away glad that I am so preoccupied to be eaten by anger causing me to hate.

It is a gift of grace that I have embraced. A friend was not so lucky, for she was a witness to a failed test. A test of ruined relationships, battered emotions, her faith in God is intact but it will take her a long time to go back and find a church, a community where she can be in fellowship with, a fellowship with open heart. She understood that it is a fact of being human, falling and failing, that it is not for her to judge, it is between the person and God. The difficulty arises when we put someone in a pedestal and decide that being elevated to that level will make them saints and will do no wrong. It is a flawed thought, for why else do we go to such lenghts of proving that a person is saint after death. When they can err no more.

Another new cafe..

There is a new cafe at the ground floor of the building where I work, it is part of chain in San Francisco and other cities, providing lunch to workers and tourists. I can't say I am thrilled with it, except that it is convenient for people working through lunch. Rather silly but Oakland is cool in the sense that it does not have a mall, save for the coffee shops, drugstores and grocers is free from chains, there are a lot of independent stores, restaurants and bookstores. Oakland, one of the biggest cities in the US is not safe from the assult of Corporate America. I wonder what this will do the Grand Avenue Grill (GAG) and the other restaurants in the neighborhood.

So the aroma of freshly baked bread replaced the stench of human existence. Yeah, that is part of Oakland, a coexistence of hard life, the pain of existence, the result of this trying econmic times and a luxurious wealthy life, a backdrop of the mansions up in the hills. A tableu of reality, a mixture of culture-of backgrounds, and everything else.

Okay, I said enough already. The food is good, cooked fresh all the time, and they deliver for just 2 bucks.

Eggspectation..

Kudos to the eggspectation restaurant, not sure if that is a chain but I was working in the Chantilly, Va office that I had their omelette.  Their eggs are just the usual ones, it would have been nice if they have eggs prepared in every way imaginable.  Remember that commercial? I love eggs, ta na na na.. I do, tamago, omelette, torta, quiche, casserole, egg salad, or fritata.

I also love eggplants, espcially with eggs. What to do then is make eggplant omelet. I didn't want to take out the tabletop grill or the foreman, nor do I want to use the oven, the effect is just different. I like to grill the old way, hot almost touching the embers, so there you are there is CO2 in this process because it does not use charcoal. It may have emitted some in the frying process. What was I trying to make here? Eggplant omelette if it has no filling embotido if it is filled.

So I first grilled the eggplant to a bit of overdone such that the skin is almost charred. Once it is done, on running water I removed the skin, which is fairly easy since it is burnt therefore almost crumbly.  Pat dry and dip in a beaten egg, add salt and pepper, you can add curry or italian seasoning, if you so prefer.  In a frying pan, heat vegetable oil--olive oil tends to heat faster, an olive canola or olive butter can be used too. Once the oil is hot enough pour the egg-eggplant combination, push the egg into the eggplant so that it does not spread throughout the pan. Turn the eggplant for an equal doneness, remember the eggplant is already cooked. We want the egg cooked, not runny or crunchy.

I had some shrimps and mushrooms crying for attention, I gave in, shelled and deveined the shimp, sliced the mushroom.  On the same pan, I caramelized some onions, put a little garlic and added the mushroom, then the shrimps last. A little salt and dinner is ready.

Did that gross you out? I assure you those coils are clean after all it is hot. Anyway it is good eating. :)

 

More on being green..

Further to my Green post not too long ago.

I am a member of the Green Team at work-work is involve in climate change, greenhouse gas, sustainability and LEED buildings, so I have this awareness about sustainability. I also grew up in a traditional household, we reused and recycled more out of economics than the environment. So, when I attended a get together where my friend used disposable utencils, I asked for stemware, not being rude but trying to espouse that idea of reusing.

Wholefoods uses compostable utencils, which I commend them for trying, but if the consumer will dispose of this items in the regular trash bins then the purpose is defeated. Oakland has banned the use of styrofoam in restaurants another good effort.

Last week I bought a couple of turners/spatula made of bamboo for less than a dollar, I walked away feeling good about myself, that was a good buy.  But walking out of the store, I recalled that cutting down of bamboo trees were banned in the Philippines because such denudation will result in flooding, an imbalance in the ecosystem.  Therefore, somewhere in the Pacific bamboos are being cutdown irresponsibly to feed the growing demand of "green" products, and if we are paying so measly for those products then the cost of production must be so low that it could be to a sweatshop level.

During martial law in the Philippines, there is this program called, "the Green Revolution." Buy locally, backyard farming, and other sustainable efforts. To a certain degree it was successful, if only dynamites were not used to catch fish in some areas or that pesticides were used more too often before the harsh effects were noted.

Responsible greening is the key.

There is a new resto in my neck of the woods..

Some weeks ago, I met a friend at the Sidebar on Grand Avenue, we didn't have reservations, so we sat at the bar--who did we see, people from church, ha ha you can't have an affair in this neighborhood, you just might bump into your confessor. The food was good, we had crostini topped with duck liver, deviled egges, frites, beans with trout, and something else that I can't remember.  For a new place, the place is abuzz, price is good, the ambiance is good, service is surprisingly outstanding. I said surprisingly because it doesn't seem to be a priority anymore.

This first outing -life, projects, faith filled the conversation. On a second outing last week, I was starving and had a bowl of mussels over shoestring potatoes in cream sauce, it's different but I liked it and I had the crostini with duck liver, what can I say, I love foie gras, and there is a new drink that I discover called Zamboanga, which is an island in the Philippines. I have always been a red drinker aside from a rare ameretto, but this is the bomb, ha ha, not because of the name but it is a good cocktail drink, very light with a slow kick.

Single women, that we are conversation of course led to dating and all that.  So, as we were seated at the bar, my friend told me to scope the room and see if the one I would be attracted to was in the room, I said, no. Well, because my type is an average Joe, a boring looking caucasian man, sorry I have the Kingkong mentality ha ha. She talked about a blind date who was all that when they were talking on the phone, a Catholic, prays the rosary regularly, hmmm possible. Who turned out to be a middle-aged Berkely man, long hair, fit, seemed like, he just stopped what he was doing to meet her. Liked beer but didn't check if the Trappist is open on Mondays, wanted to see a movie (on a first date?) can't decide what he wanted to see, went instead for ice cream but he didn't have cash on him. Whoops that's too many whammies! Next, she said.

But going back to the food, it is good, the noise level of the restaurant is a bit high but tolerable.

      542 Grand Ave
      Oakland, CA 94610-3515
      (510) 452-9500
     Get directions

Now, I am going back to bed :) Good morning!

The Saturday that was a while ago..

Yesterday morning, I attended a mass officiated by the Bishop of Oakland in the Cathedral, it was a mass for the youth of Oakland--not to say I am one. It turned out to be a celebration for St. John, one of the first priests, it is the year of the priests, after all, didn't know that. The Bishop was wearing his hat, as an inspiration to the youths in their vocation, to answer God's calling. He said vocation is not a career is not something that you have to be good at, often mistaken for as ways to be famous, make money, an oxymoron if you would look at it. The former being selfless, a response to a deeper call, giving of oneself without any expectation of a reward. Whereas the latter is so full of self, popularity, wealth, and success. Wow!

So after mass, I went next door to do a little bit of work until it is time to go to a celebration for a friend.  It was her birthday it is also a sort of celebration to her liberation from her aversion to anything techie, (oooh that's too may tion there) she just got an Iphone and is enjoying it.  What is it that they say, there is an app for that.  All in all it was a good gathering, easy and relaxing. Ohhh, the margarita was strong and I discovered a summer pie, a no bake lemonade pie.  Yummm.. no pix this time, in the next gathering perhaps.. hint hint.. 

One of the gifts that she received was a book on zodiac signs (Catholic readers, don't flinch it's just a game :)) where there is a category called luncheon meat, the Libran spam is corned beef. My friend's husband's spam is olive, he cringed saying it is something that he hated as a child, eliciting a question as to what would he prefer listening to Elvis or eating an olive spam, he said none of the above.

Anyway, as soon as I got home, I went to bed being tired from all that activity, I am getting old, one event is enough for me.. Well an early bed does not work for me, woke up from a NAP energized to update this blog.

Oh! some days you will read me weaving words around subjects that does not seem to matter or those that matter but would segue into something else, consider it as a practice in writing. An effort to rehearse the crafting of worthy prose, I have not given up on my desire to write when I grow up, he he.. Factoid or urban legend, did you know that these days part of one's portfolio includes Facebook, Twitter, and a blog, so if you are applying for a job that involves writing, you should have a blog to show proof , the others are I guess proof that you know and use the technology available. They do search for you online, word of the wise, go easy on what you say as it may haunt you when you don't expect it.

Saging na Saba (plantain to you)

It is rare that I find this type of banana in the local markets, I looked up the English translation and it says plantain.  But plantain looks different, this variety has corners sweet with a bit of a tang when ripe. It can be prepared in different ways, it is edible uncooked but we hardly eat it that way. It can be grilled skin off, baked, sweetened and eaten with crushed ice and milk, fried with batter, deep fried in sugar, wrapped in lumpia wrapper with jack fruit and fried, or boiled in this case.  Oh, there are also a hundred and one options for the green- not ripe ones. The easiest of which is to let it ripen to a soft state and put it in a pot of water let it boil to maybe 15 minutes and voila breakfast is ready.  I put a little butter and sugar for the kill, otherwise it can be eaten as is.

[caption id="attachment_662" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Yummy bananas prepared Filipino Style"][/caption]

Banana Factoids:

Here are some images from Google.  Did you know that banana is a member of the palm family, once it has bore fruit, at least this variety, then it has reached it's full lifecycle and it will dry and die. But before that happens it would have multiplied and created havoc on the area.  The leaves can be harvested to a degree even before it has reached it's full cycle and can be used for wrapped rice, another Asian delicacy, or fish, it enhances the flavor and allows tiny ingredients to be cooked together without crushing it. Oh, as the tree or the palm matures, the blossom where the fruits develop has the shape of a heart, literally called, heart of banana, duh, this is harvested once the fruits have developed.  It is said that if it is not removed, the banans will not grow fully. That heart is also edible and is cooked with either coconut milk or vinegar. The whole bunch of fruits is harvested green, letting it ripen on the tree will invite insects, birds, and other critters.  The stalk of the leaves can be used to as a base for cooking if you want to simmer fish and don't want it to stick on the pot. In some cultures it is also cooked in coconut milk. Nope, it's not over, once the fruit has been harvested, the trunk of the palm has a core that is soft and is also edible, as a salad, sauteed or cooked in coconut milk.  Wow, I just realized that having a banana tree must be good for this economy, it is not just decorative as I see around the neighborhood.

Other traditional uses of banana leaves, let it pass through heat on a stove cut it into circles and you have liners for your serving dishes or picnic plate holders, that's really being green. Before the advent of teflon on flat irons, they used the banana leaves a stand for flat irons that way it wouldn't stick.

This plant is good for those with a sore green thumb, as it does not need caring for, it is a survivor :), it does not even need watering. Dried leaves need to be removed periodically and the buds replanted for aesthetic reasons.

Have a banana, it will drive the zits away.

Yama Sushi Restaurant on Franklin St.

Beside the Bistro Manila Restaurant of the previous post is Yama Sushi. The first time I came in after a noon-time mass at the Cathedral, I was surprised-hmm this used to be a Vietnamese sandwich shop where I can get lunch for a measly 5 dollars. So I pulled a chair, can't say no to sushi or California roll with heaps of Japanese Mayonnaise (zero cholesterol.)This is a little different, most items are ordered by piece.

Three pieces of sushi or rolls for 99 cents after 1:30 pm.  who can't dig that.  1 order and a bowl of udon soup with a bottle of soda will certainly hit the spot. One of the servers used to work for the Chinese Restaurant on the other side of Grand Avenue, who remembers my preferred drink is diet coke on a glassful of ice. I can almost see my friend smirking, they don't put ice on their from their side of the world.

This place is a good find, fresh inexpensive, friendly staff, not crowded. You can people watch while eating or immerse on a good book. 

     Yama Sushi Restaurant
     1814 Franklin St. #2
     corner of 19th St.
     Oakland, Ca 94612
     510.986.1226 
     M-F: 11:00 am to 3:00 pm

Bistro de Manila (Filipino Restaurant) in Oakland..

It's not really the bistro that we know of, metal and glass tables with antique looking chairs, outside seating, cozy. It turned out that the origins of bistro is french and russian and that it means something that is quick.  This Bistro is actually an all you can eat restaurant.  Although, how much can one eat for lunch is relative,  it is a place lined with trays of different types of food, certainly can make one eye-hungry.  I think in the 70's  this type of restaurant is called smorgasboard.

 And here is what yelp had to say.  I have sworn off this place several times, but I always come back-to fulfill the craving from Pinoy food.

365 19th Street
Oakland, Ca 94612

Newsflash! We were at the restaurant that week, chatting with the owner who gave us a frequent diner card. What do you say, a few days after I came back, the place is closed and is under construction for a Vietnamese restaurant.  Oh well, that's the PInoy.. no details whatsoever..

Pizza,mousse, and churchie talks

I think this was the week before the Holy Week, they were going for a retreat in Denver  (not sure about this link, they will comment on it, if it is not), So they decided that we should cook and enjoy a movie or something. But I wasn't feeling up to it, T came with her organic and healthy pizza ingredients, we were both lazy. L came late of course, with the dessert ingredients, she was the only one cooking :).  We ended up ordering pizza from pizza rustica, gluten free and vegetarian, how sad is that ha ha.. 

Whatever we do, discussion always segued into churcie talks, how progressive can a Catholic church be without defying the dictum, the teachings of the church.  Recall that the Catholic Church does not only rely on the Scripture, the teaching and the doctrine, and its traditions. Sometimes we got hangup on what should and what shouldn't be, but then when do we stop participating in activities that defies the things that the Church represents.

 It is certainly a call that we each have to answer, we are answerable to our conscience, to God, and the creatures that we co-exist with. It is indeed mind boggling to say that we comply, that we are not rightfully the children of God.  But we can't be that, we are forgiven, absolved of our past sins and justified of our future sins. So what is the problem, maybe we just don't know how to enjoy the combination of pizza and an avocado mousse and a raspberry mousse.

It was enjoyable,  I take it back, there was sausage in a section of that rice-crust pizza. But then again, T has not taken a lead in these cooking experiments that we do, how about these samosas recipes?

Am back..

Didn't I say that before.. I know, my posting has been sporadic, but it has been hectic and if it wasn't the fingers can't seem to create a collection of words worth reading..

So there, there will be more to come..

Macaroon is not a cookie and does not have coconut..

This was the fact laid down to us by a friend, creating such a snob noise in the process.  Silently I was thinking, anything that's round is a cookie and macaroons do have coconut in it.  Because I grew up in a small town where one of the largest manufacturing plant of dessicated coconut is located, I had to insist that there has to be coconut in it.  Of course the argument ended there, because my friend's mom owns a macaroon industrial processing plant.  It is that huge, they bake macaroons by the ton.  I will have the link the next time you check this page.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="466" caption="Macaroons are not cookies and does not have coconut in it."][/caption]

Anyway, her mom visited and showed us how to make the to die for macaroon, that is not a cookie :0

Of course, I can't tell you how to make it here as it is a business and I don't want to jeopardize the trade secret, but I can say that the ingredients are:

almond meal (I was just imagining that it will be nice to make something out of ground almond, not realizing that it already exist in the market, how ancient is that)

vanilla bean

coffee essence or chocolate or pistaccio

sugar

egg whites and some yolks

The end result was an airy very light delicacy, it was so good that t took so much to reach a satiation point.  Notice that it has a sandwich-like look where 2 pieces are glued together, not by cream or -sugar glue but the moisture generated from putting the oven-fresh macaroons over a tray of hot water and gently putting them together. It is such a laborious process that is best done with a group of friends either with a movie or sufficient alcohol to imbibe such that it is a fun activity.  Great for bonding, I should say.

Oh and if the mixture has a little bit of light consistency then it is aired under the sun so that evaporation will occur.

That "C" Word Again..

I snuck out from work today, not that anybody will notice as the cube farm is quiet, and visited a friend.  It all started with abdominal pain, she had to stay in the hospital for testing. Then I heard that she underwent surgery.. The prognosis, she has cancer -- of what? that is the question.  The determination will come from the Oncology Department who can't seem to come up with an answer.

The rumor at the hospital she will be discharged tomorrow, she will have to undergo a series of chemo treatment. But no one can tell her anything else.

In the meantime, her only son is agonizing at the thought but can't comprehend any of this..

Such cruelty, she can't even say a direct prayer to God, hah, what will she say, Oh God, I have cancer but I don't know of what.. :) I don't understand, just a little attention-compassion will not really cost anything but will allow her and her family and friends to know better.

eeeeeeek...

Swine flu and other uncertainties..

So I had lunch with the hole makers and others for efforts unrewarded and we got to asking everyone, "who is gainfully employed today".  There were 2 responses on a table for 10, one was slammed as his project is going on construction.  The other is on a missed deadline on a website she is rebuilding, because the original programmer forgot to insert a single line script that will automatically back up the database.

The rest of us were saying, oh we don't mind waiting, nothing is waiting for us.  Somebody mentioned about Mexico the swine flu and the earthquake, that it is double whammy - if the patients are quarantined but have to be evacuated because of the earthquake.  Then somebody said, hmmm if there is an earthquake here in NorCal, the SoCal folks will have a lot of projects and vice versa. See how idle minds work.

Then another group will probably be sold, because they are getting expensive and therefore uncompetitive a lot of things will have to be satisfied if a project is solicited from a consultancy firm. A lot of things going on, too much pressure for the soft hearted. The boss lady is moving to Chicago to follow her love who is on TDY there. The group is shrinking what's going to happen to what's left of it.

Change is indeed imminent.

Pinoy facts..

Filipino Facts You Probably Didn't Know

this has been circulating in the pinoy world on email, I though I'd share to the blogging world.

- Founded in 1595 by Spaniard, the University of San Carlos (USC) in Cebu City, Philippines is older than Harvard and is the oldest university in Asia.
- University of Santo Tomas in Manila, established in 1611, is Asia's second oldest.

- In the Philippines, Filipinos were introduced to the English language in 1762 by British invaders, not Americans.

- What is the world's 3rd largest English-speaking nation, next to the U.S.A. and the UK? The Philippines.

- The USA bought the Philippines, Puerto Rico and Guam from Spain in 1898. The Filipino-American Independence War from 1898 to 1902 ensued, killing 4,234 Americans and how many Filipinos? 16,000 were killed in action and 200,000 died from famine and pestilence. (The Philippines lost and was colonized until 1946.)

- Los Angeles, California was co-founded in 1781 by a Filipino namedAntonio Miranda Rodriguez, along with 43 Latinos from Mexico sent by the Spanish government.

- What antibiotic did Filipino doctor Abelardo Aguilar co-discover? Hint: Brand is Ilosone, named after Iloilo. Erythromycin.

- The one-chip video camera was first made by Marc Loinaz, a Filipino inventor from New Jersey.

- The first ever international Grandmaster from Asia was Eugenio Torre, a Filipino, who won at the Chess Olympiad in Nice, France in 1974.

- This son of two Filipino physicians scored over 700 on the verbalportion of the Standardized Achievement Test (SAT) before age 13 is Kiwi Danao Camara of Punahou School, Hawaii.

- Edward Sanchez, a Mensa member, bagged the grand prize in the first Philippines Search for Product Excellence in Information Technology.

- Who was the Filipino-American dancer who scored a perfect 1600 on the SAT? Joyce Monteverde of California.

- Who invented the fluorescent lamp? Thomas Edison discovered the electric light and the fluorescent lighting was thought up by Nikola Tesla. But the fluorescent lamp we use today was invented by Agapito Flores (a Cebu man named Benigno Flores of Bantayan Island, according to the Philippine Daily Inquirer), a Filipino scientist.

- Americans helped, then, President leader Ramon Magsaysay to develop for worldwide commerce. (Yes! Many foreigners have noted that the Filipino population has Asia's highest rates of inventors and international beauty queens.)

- Two Filipina beauties, Gloria Diaz and Margie Morgan, chosen as Miss Universe in 1969 and 1973.

- Pure or part-Filipino celebrities in American show biz include VonFlores, Tia Carere, Paolo Montalban, Lea Salonga, Ernie Reyes Jr., Nia Peeples, Julio Iglesias Jr., Lou Diamond Phillips, Phoebe Cates and Rob Schneider.

The first Filipino act to land a top hit on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart in the 1960 was a group Rocky Fellers of Manila. Sugar Pie deSanto (father was from the Philippines), The Artist Formerly Known as Prince (according to the October, 1984 article "Prince in Exile" by Scott Isler in magazine Musician), Foxy Brown and Enrique Iglesias followed.

- Pure Filipinos who made success in minor charts were Jocelyn Enriquez, aka: Oriental Madonna, Buffry, Pinay and (Ella May) Saison.

- Latina-American pop star Christina Aguilar lost to Filipina Josephine Roberto aka Banig during the International Star Search years ago. In a mid-1999 MTV chat, she said that competing against someone of Banig's age was "not fair".

- Besides gracing fashion magazine covers, this international super model from Manila had walked the runways since the 1970s for all the major designers, like Calvin Klein, Chanel, Christian Lacroix, Donna Karan, Gianni Versace and Yves Saint Larent - Anne Bayle.

- Who is the personal physician of United States President William Clinton? Eleanor "Connie" Conception Mariano, a Filipina doctor who was the youngest Captain in the US Navy.

- The first Filipino-American in US Congress was Virginia Rep. Robert Cortez-Scott, a Harvard alumnus.

- Distinguished British traveler-writer A. Henry Savage Landor, thrilled upon seeing a Bicol landmark in 1903 wrote: "Mayon is the most beautiful mountain I have ever seen, the world-renowned Fujiyama (Mt. Fuji) of Japan sinking into perfect insignificance by comparison. "Mayon has the world's most perfect cone."

- Filipinos had their first taste of Mexican chili and corn during the Manila-Acapulco galleon trade (1564-1815). In return, Mexico's people had their initial taste of tamarind, Manila mango and a Filipino banana called racatan or lakatan.

- The first female president of the Philippines sworn into office in 1986 was Corazon Cojuangco Aquino. Her maiden name is chinese.

- On March 31, 1997 article, The New York Times reported that the CIA manipulated elections: "(CIA operative Col. Edward Lansdale essentially ran the successful presidential campaign of Defense Minister Ramon Magsaysay in the Philippines in 1953."

- Who was the first Asian and/or Filipino to snatch America's Pulitzer Prize? Philippines Herald war journalist Carlos P. Romulo in 1941. (He was also the first Asian to become UN President.) The first two Filipino-Americans to garner the same award 56 years later were Seattle Times' Alex Tizon and Byron Acohido, who was part-Korean.

- Filipino writer Jose Rizal could read and write at age 2, and grew up to speak more than 20 languages, including Latin, Greek, German, French and Chinese. What were his last words? "Consummatum est!" ("It is done!").

- "What's still impressive to me about the Philippines is the friendliness of the people, their sense of humor..." wrote Honolulu journalist John Griffin in a 1998 visit to Manila. Although, I lived in America longeryears than my birth place Bohol, I still have plenty of bagoong left in my body that can energize and catapulted me all the way to Maribojoc, Bohol, Philippines.

Pinoy recipes from my bro..

Whenever I talk to my family, conversation will always end up with food, who cooked, who discovered new recipes, of course mom will always have the final say as to "what is the best".  Kudos to mom, though, she got married with no clue as to cooking, she discovered the kitchen out of need -- to feed the hungry kids he he..

I remember my brother was telling me how frustrated he was, when he made country soup and the family just took for an entree and put rice over it.  Filipino cooking though relies on fresh ingredients so there is I feel nothing one can do to improve, unless another dish is created a fusion with another cuisine. But the traditionalists will not go with that, if it is shrimp then it is with this or that.

So, I will get this emails from another brother with cool pictures of food, I suspected he was a new blogger with a different name.. ha ha, he was just testing those Filipino recipes online and that was his way of giving a thumbs up. So, I thought I had something to share here.. but nada.. oh well

A fundraising event..

Every year the local employees at work, hold a fundraising event, a mini golf tournament  with themed holes. Last year the theme was green, so the creative folks, had St. Patrick, Green - environ, the dollar, and other green ideas.

This year it was the "Spring Fling" I would have wanted to create a whole with a miniature BART train,etc. time snuck up on me and I didn't even had the chance to conceptualize. It was fun, people paid $10.00 to play and used mulligans to remove a previous bad move (more like confession huh!). 

They used real flowers here and called this a "mountain of torture", this is Hole 1 and a little tricky. 

The bridge, I think this was crafted by the Transportation Group, another tricky hole.

So the proceeds will go to the Childrens Hospital in Oakland, those who did not play, purchased raffle tickets, the prizes of which were solicited from friends in the neighborhood. Hotels, restaurants, etc. It was a fun and a rewarding experience at that. Anybody wants to buy raffle tickets? ::)

Who..

At a recent RCIA session, the ethicist lecturer narrated this story and instructed us to rank the characters according to the degree of gravest error, here goes:

Paul, a production manager at a manufacturing plant, called his production supervisor, Juan to his office. He told Juan that needs to set up a factory in a town across the river from the present location. They need the factory to drum up business and Juan is the only person who can do the job.  Juan is hesitant because he is planning to marry his fiance, March as soon as he is able to gather enough funds and he wouldn't want to leave her behind. Paul gave him an ultimatum that if he not set up the factory he will be fired. That being the case, Juan relented and agreed to set up the factory, he was so sad and promised to call Martha every night.  During one of his phone calls to Martha, she sensed the anguish in his heart because of utter  loneliness and she made a decision to visit him.  She however didn't have enough money, a total of $300.oo to take the bus, ferry, and bus to his location. She approached Paul flat out said no despite her pleadings.. On her way home, she mentioned her problem to the ferry owner/driver Aldo, who refused initally. Afer she asked him the second time, he agreed on one condition that she will be his sex slave for a day.  In her moment of desperation, she agreed. So she was able to see her fiancee Juan.

Juan so eagerly met her at the bus station, after showing her around town and his living quarters, they settled down. He prepared a dinner of fish stew and white wine.  As the conversation progressed, Juan asked Martha where she got the money for transportation, she was hesitant at first but with much prodding she told him everything. At that moment Juan had a mental blackout, the woman that she respected, the virtue that they were preserving until marriage was violated. He pounced her on the face and hit her so hard that she collapsed on the floor. 

He didn't even bother to see how she was, he immediately dashed out of the room and went to the local salon.  Not being a drinker, he was drank after 2  orders of cheap brandy. While drinking he was talking to a woman of the night, Magda - telling her of his tales of woe and on his last sip of his drink, he decided to buy what she is offering. He woke up in her bedroom and realized that everything has crumbled that the life that they have planned for is gone.

There is no right or wrong answer. [polldaddy poll=1575120]

Online dating..

I don't really date seriously, that's why I am approaching my golden years singly. But a girl still desires to be with someone, despite the contentment and the peace that we have.


So I ventured online, Avemariesingles.com, I sent messages, got responses, and received some messages too, nothing really clicked, then I got a message recently from this guy who is younger than me, ha ha.. I liked the way he practices his faith, I am going to learn a lot from him. We will see.

Now we are in the telephoning stage and I will see him next weekend.

Diaspora story..

This story never cease to make me laugh. It's not really that funny of sophisticated humor but somehow we can relate to it. http://simplyb0r3d.wordpress.com/2008/11/23/nakakaaliw-na-kwento-ng-isang-ofw/

Enjoy!

The day I was invited by AARP

I still have a few months to my 50th birthday and I was already invited by AARP. I had mixed feelings, of course, after all I am still a gurl and part of this society where aging is not the coolest of cools.

But that was only momentary, I realized that to be 50 is really something to be desired about. I don't have to worry about what people will think. Everything is just me and me alone, oops, does that sound selfish. I hope not. What I mean is, there is confidence about me that I didn't have before.

Do you know what I mean? I am not singly these days, but it does not bother me at all. I just feel good about it. Now, I hope it goes on and on.

So, what I think I will do is document here, how it is to be 50, to share my thoughts and my feelings.

Let me know what you think.

Buttermilk donuts

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="450" caption="yum, a new morning favorite"][/caption]

These days the weather has been cooperating allowing me to take the bus or even walk to work, that saves me money.. but not the calories. The bus stop that I get off going to work is a few step to a donut shop, and i discovered this buttermilk beauties. I hesitate to check the caloric value of these wonders-that will certainly put my doctor to sleep.

And so whatver it is that I am saving on cabfare, I am gaining on cholesterol.. ha ha..

 

 

 

 

Priceless ...

I was walking home one afternoon, contemplating on the inevitables of this economy, brooding at the possibilities-the options available. When Lordy nudged me, saying it is not the end of the world, something good is going to come out of this.. and whoa right in front of me an early view of spring. 

Beautiful isn't it? And it's free..

There is an app for that..

Yeah, there is an app for that..

• When you turn 28, invite your friends to a hike, a dinner, and a visit to the Eucharist


• or 35, to a wine bar;


• or almost 47, that happens to be a one year anniversary, a Vietnamese dinner followed by coffee and a piece of cake;

Well, I was going to be cute here, with that opening salvo, and I have somehow lost my momentum. I really should start writing down those occurences when it hit me:)

So, I am going to put this to rest and consider it as a W-I-P.

There is danger:

When I hate, for they might hate us back.

When you dislike my color, for having only one solid color can be boring and blinding.

When I reject, for I myself might be ejected.

When I complain, for God might take it all back thinking that I never liked what He gave me.

When I allow you to affect my psyche, go into my head, for I might turn into you.

When I don't accept, for I may not be accepted elsewhere too.

When you reject without trying, for you will miss out on new discoveries.

When you lose sight of what is important, for you will grow weary and disatisfied insisting on your own way as the right way.

When you don't smile, for you will get more wrinkles than Clinique's Turnaround Cream can fix.

Recipe: Tuna salad, a new discovery..

There is someone in our Bible Study Group regularly brings a 2-can tuna salad to everyone's delight.  It is so good that I have developed a taste for it.  Being that I eat her concoction every week, I thought I would try a different variety. I thought of hmmm how about kalamata olives and capers. It turned out tasty, so I thought I would share it here.

        1 can of tuna or salmon
        1 tablespoon of mayonnaise
        quarter onion minced
        salt and pepper to taste
        chopped kalamata olives in brine maybe 10 pcs.
        1 tablespoon of capers

         Mix all the ingredients, enjoy.. good with bread, cracker, or chip

Earlier that Saturday

[caption id="attachment_536" align="aligncenter" width="445" caption="A retreat at St. Albert's Priory"][/caption]

Earlier that Saturday, we had an RCIA team meeting, followed by a retreat with the team, the elects, and their sponsors.  It was a wonderful experience, the sharing especially. The first activity was to determine the factors that help and hinder our deep relationship with God. There was also the serenity walk, a discussion on inner peace, and the discovery of each other's gifts.

Trust is one of the big things that hinder, the inability to trust others. What I realized is if we are able to see God's gift in others, we should also be able to realize that we loved by God, hence the gifts.

Does that make sense?

Of Chairs and Friends

This chair is perched on a credenza in my friend's living room.  Not the center piece really, on her eclectic home, as she has a lot of tasteful pieces.  They are artsy people, everytime I visit there is something new to ogle.  Even their restroom is fancy- artsy.  Oh, I can write a lot pages on their home, but that will make them uncomfortable. What results from my visits is what I wanted to blab about. he he

First there was the yearly white elephant gift exchange during the Christmas season, pampered chef cooking show, then they just had to find a reason to entertain, that they found this table on Craigslist.  The table was covered with this lovely Indian tablecloth from, you guessed it right, "white elephant sale" from the Oakland Museum.

They took pains pairing guests so that it would result in a lively event. Even going through lengths of cautioning the guests that they don't generally pray before meals on this occasions but will not listen to their conversations with themselves during this time.  This along with a little profile about the guests.  I wouldn't be surprised the next time they do this that they say, she is on fb as, or she tweets as, or on wp as.  Ha ha, this world that we live in.

From a museum director to a social director, the dinner that I attended was well paired, I get to listen to the art process of the the artists, truly enjoyable. I must credit my Art Appreciation professor in college, she gave me a glimpse of that world, that never left me. Anyway, that conversation of course lead to food that resulted in our hosting a progressive dinner sometime in May.

Last Saturday, we tested this new tapas place on Telegraph, good not too hard on the wallet, but because I am Pinoy and most of our food has the Spanish influence, I didn't get easily wowed with the food. It was tasty but not new to my palate (no air intended).  This is a sign of a brewing friendship, I must say.  Salute..

 

 

Money on Paper has No Value..

 

I am not the most organized person in the world, unused plane tickets, expired train tickets, commuter checks, and now this void check. I tried to ask for the reissuance of this check but was told that there is no more account to charge to. I don't understand that, having worked for a bank, I know that what is deposited to an account unless collected willl still bein coffers of the issuing bank andi n the account of the issuer. So if the check is voided and uncollected, where will it be.

To some the value is probably just a pittance and it is just not the principle of it, it is a week or so worth of food on the table.  he he

Dear readers, can you enlighten me?

 

 

 

Signs and Symptoms of Inner Peace

The Pastor at the Cathedral shared this article-an original thought i think  in the Sunday Bulletin, which I didn't pay too much attention to until a friend pointed it to me. I am sharing it here for everybody to enjoy.

Be on the alert for symptoms of inner peace. The hearts of a great many have already been exposed to inner peace and it is possible that people everywhere could come down with it in epidemic proportions. This could pose a serious thread to what has, up to now, been a fairly stable condition of conflict in the world.

 Some signs and symptoms of inner peace:

• A tendency to think and act spontaneously rather than on fears based on great experiences.


• An unmistakable ability to enjoy each moment.


• A loss of interest in judging other people.


• A loss of interest in interpreting the actions of others.


• A loss of interest in conflict.


• A loss of the ability to worry. (This is a very serious symptom.)


• Frequent overwhelming episodes of appreciation.


• Contented feelings of connectedness with others and nature.


• Frequent attacks of smiling.


• An increasing tendency to let things happen rather than make them happen.


• An increased susceptibility to the love extended by others as well as the uncontrollable urge to extend it.

Pili nut butterscotch brownies

Pili nut butterscotch brownies

Sorry, I didn't mean to drop this link here with nary a word. Ni ha ni ho as what we Pinoys, would say. I tried to make butterscoth bars over the weekend and I must have used a recipe for a different butterscoth as it didn't come out right. What I was aiming for are the Filipino holiday butterscotch bars.

I said holiday because I usually get this during the holidays with blocks of fruit cake. This is what I came up with, it reminds me of the shortbread biscuits that comes in those plaid-painted tin cans.

Recipe: Noodles, for Long Life

 It must be the Chinese influence, birthdays are always celebrated with noodles in my culture, for long life. Even with my friends from the West, I insist on it, that's an anathema to my faith. I'd like to think it is just the tradition of it all and not something that is superstitious, ha ha.

I love noodles, that's the Pinoy in me, I don't eat it with rice, mind you. Noodles, just like pasta is for just a vessel for flavors, single pan cooking method, which makes it convenient even if cooking for one. My freezer is loaded with mainstays like shrimp, pork, Chinese sausage (chorizo) and different kinds of fish cake, fish balls, etc.

Oh, a little note on the noodles, there are rice noodles - wash and let sit in the water for a few minutes; dry egg noodles that you boil in water just like pasta, fresh egg noodles- has to be pre-cooked too, otherwise it will be starchy.

So, the basic ingredients are:

onions, sliced thinly (I like to cut up the ingredients in the same way as the main ingredient, for convenience, mainly.)
garlic or ginger (I freeze my ginger, so it is easy to use a cheese grater instead of slicing)
cabbage thinly sliced (carrots, zuchini, beans, celery stalks will also work)
soy sauce
oyster sauce
broth or water - a cup
olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Method:

If you're using pork, I cook it first with a little water and salt, once the water is dry and the meat turns brown, the meat will secrete(w?) a little oil. Add olive oil, caramelize onions, add garlinc or ginger, the chorizo would have been added to to the pork, then the cabbage, or the veggie of your choice. Let it cook for a little bit, add broth or water, season to taste, then add noodles. Add any seafood last to avoid overcooking.

Some folks remove the vegges and the meat and top it to the noodles later. I don't I like everything mixed in so that the flavor is infused in the noodles.

You can garnish with parsley, slices of boiled egg.

Enjoy with lemon and soy sauce, toyomansi or ponzu in Japanese cuisine.

As mentioned earlier, this is a very versatile recipe, tofu can be added in place of meat or it can be an all vegetable recipe. The difference from Chinese and Japanese way of cooking is that broth is used here instead of just oil and sauce. Chinese cooking uses corn starch as a thickening agent. Black bean sauce or garlic sauce can be used as an option too. The options are endless.

Empty..

An existence without God can be empty. Branches without leaves, like being in the desert.  All of us have this hole that needs to be filled,. How we chose to fill it is up to us. Do we want to fill it with the living water of God's love?  The love that gives us contentment, inner peace. and that ability to take a rest and lift it all up to him. Or do we want to complete it with material things and worldly desires, where there is no the hole becomes a bottomless pit? There is no contentment, the desire for more is always present.

Green...

How Green Are you?

.

Have you ever been green with envy?

 Are you "green"? Really green, I mean.. not the kind coming out of a whole foods store, head held high for you holding a reusable bag of groceries with compostable cartons and utencils made of potato skins.  But where did you dispose those cartons, not in the regular garbage bins, I hope.. it will take years to go back to earth because of the oxidation.  Leaving your efforts in futility.

Being green is an effort, really. It is a lifestyle change. There is the conscious decision always, using the dishwasher, the kind of detergent, being sustainable, reuse, etc. Do you buy products that are imported that took a lot of effort to produce and transport to your location? The economics of it all has to be considered too.

In the olden days, these are not even choices, it is the way of life.

So, how green are you.

Rot..

I am such a  lounger, so coming back from Wednesday prayer night--a Lenten ceremony where parable of the blind man was reflected upon. While lounging, I was contemplating on how I can gently tell this friend of mine that he is not be morose and miserable when Lordy is doing everything to make our existence a joyful one. Can't come up with an answer, so I moved on.

Anyway, I was chatting on skype with a friend who is migrating to Canada with her family.  We were reminiscing momemnts of darkness. Wondering where our friend psychic friend is now.  I cautioned her to leave room for frustration and to let Lordy surprise her as to what is in store for her there..

Buzzzz, yahoo messenger my friend's sister rang.  Her sister wanted to talk to me, after making arrangements as to the whens, I did call immediately. The opening salvo was, "I have cancer and it is stage x,"  I was taken aback, not sure what to say.  Calling on to Lordy at the same time.  The only thing I can muster was, "but you are so young" and said, "Can I take that in, for a moment". She heard my deep breaths and thought I was smoking.

"Did you talk to Lordy?", I asked her. Of course, she did asking for more time.  We digressed and talk about high school life and googled our classmates. 

I don't know what to make of it-- talking to friends this afternoon about it, I gave in a little bit, felt my eyes welling a bit. Finished the bar of chocolate that I was hiding from myself. sigh..

The big "C" is like that rotten orange on the picture huh. That was a rotten orange that I dropped on the floor on the way to the garbazh. I thought, oh look at that even a rotten thing can have two sides to it.  The mold dust and a clear juice, we just had to make a choice of how we see it.

Hmmmmm...

Street Fare: Fishballs

Pinoy food, the Oakland Way.

You probably have seen TV shows featuring gastronomic studies of different areas of the Philippines, Bourdain and Zimmerman were the more popular ones. Street food is a regular feature of the major cities in the Philippines, no matter how sophisticated it is.  From the fried chicks, barbecued chicken intestines, adidas (chicken feet) and my favorite fishballs.  Of course we can only have it in school, where the thought of germies are temporarily overlooked.  Imagine small doughy balls with only a hint of fish flavor, fried in oil that has been used multiple times. After paying, one is given a small skewer (barbecue stick), stab the fish balls from the pan dip on a vinegary sauce, followed by a thicker sweet and sour sauce. 

It was good, not sure if it was really that tasty or the joy of partaking street fare that was more significant.

Those memories were parked in the binder called "youdth", remember, "Joe Pesci"? But I was discovering different Asian markets, I came across a bolltled fish ball sauce. Hmmmm, something must be done about that.  The search for fish balls ensued, I only found the Vietnamese variety.  It worked,  a bag served two big ones, it didn't taste as good though, perhaps it has only the native germies from my kitchen.

Believing Out Loud..Let the world know.

A friend forwarded this in an email, I thought I'd share it here..

Please do it right away, before NBC takes this off their web page. Poll is still open so you can vote:

Click here for the poll.

Ice cream to chase the blues away..

I have a sweet tooth to my detriment, not too much cakes but ice cream,particulary this brand Haagen Dazs. After four years or so of coffee flavor I am upgrading to more fruitti ones.

I don't often induldge but when I do ,it is serious a pint in one sitting. A friend once asked me if I drink from the jug, Isaid I don't--backwash. What I do is eat ice cream from a pint, then justify that I can't return it back to the freezer because I ate from it, a good justification to finish it all.

It's funny how we get trapped by the rules, it is almost mechanical, without any logic to it.  Is it because it is ingrained in our brains from when our cognition is still forming.

How about how we practice our faith? No matter how we desire to be holy, to be good, somehow something evil creeps in. The way we interpret and implement things can cause pain to others.  Adherence to the teachings and scriptures if not borne out of love is therefore not the preferred action. Nope, that is hardly my posit at all. But it makes sense.

Mine is always, it is between you and God, if you are justified with your actions, then it is good enough for me.

Life is complicated huh! A bowl of ice cream will certainly do the trick. Have one on me he he he.

A church dinner..

A couple of weeks ago, we had a sit down dinner at our church for the ministry members. An appreciation dinner for the one hundred or so people who help in the liturgy an everything else. It was wonderful, but because I am Pinoy with the right and left brain functioning all at once, my joy is in the procress, the preparation. There was no committee, just a group of friends all eager to help and do the work for the church.

It was fun to watch the concerted efforts during the set up and the clean up. It was like watching a performance on stage. The used glasses created an almost artful image here huh.

 

You can tell that I am an admirer of good pictures and an amateur camera clicker at that, so from time to time I have this urge to show some images that I enjoy, I hope you enjoy them too. But hey, ffeel ree to maka a comment. 

Oh! the food was prepared by Mj's food by design, a young company in Oakland. The menu was mixed green salad with craisins, sliced almonds, feta cheese with vinaigrette dressing, Mediterranean salad, grilled vegetables with balsamic vinegar, roast beef, chicken cacciatore, artisan bread, and for dessert berry cobbler with ice cream.

After all the holidays..

Quack, I didn't realize that I have not updated this site until my cousin said so...  hmmm, now I don't know what to say and just like any aspiring writer I have a material everyday. I just didn't write it down.

A lot of events has transpired. Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year, Valentines day, and birthdays of people who are dear to me.

Last week, with only a few hours of sleep I grudgingly got out of bed, showered, dressed slowly, called the cab and off to work I went. The cabbie was a cheerful, heavyset Mexican with his first born daughter in Freshman year in college. She just returned from a weeklong trip to Catalina Island.  When complimented about his good parenting, he said he believes in God and that's the answer.  Of course I had to ask if he is a Catholic, symbolic logic right, which to my dismay he said no.  He said that he has a very strong relationship with God and that a man with religion prays hard the whole day, beats his wife and does not work to support his family. 

I must admit we  both had blinders, just like you and me.  All these preconceived ideas has no purpose nor meaning.  Again and again I hear about it in the Gospel, in the homily, and it was brought home by the moral ethics lecture in RCIA. He said, "You have to see me, to love me."  Political correctness is sometimes not the answer to all our differences. In our effort not to hurt we tend to ignore and therefore unable to address the issue.

But let me not distract you from all that musings, last week a friend moved to a new apartment, a group of us helped her or rather I watched them move, I cooked and provided company, that's what I am good for hah!

Anyway, my main point of the story is that I am so pleased that my friends and friends of friends were there to help that it made the task easier.  In the Philippines, there is this thing called "Bayanihan", one of a Filipino characteristic, where neighbors help each other to complete the task.  I believe this started when folks are into farming.  So harvesting is completed easily when it is a collective effort.  See the image here showing a group people moving a house.

Blah.. blah...

I might have cancer...
His goal for 2009 is marriage, but...
I am dating xxx, 15 years my senior and a co-worker...
He is back with his..

Whoa, slow down,  that's too much to take in.. that's pretty much what I have heard these past days.. that and the uncertainty of tomorrow is causing to look and ask HIM, What His plans are? I am holding on waiting for the culmination of those plans.

These past Sundays I have been going to different churches seeking the answers.  It was an enjoyable experience seeing Lordy in  a different -- yeah it was fun seeing Him -- expressed differently, altogether spiritual and holy, what a joy.  I so love being a Catholic.

So, yesterday, a friend at Bible Study was saying, something about feeling guilty all the time, I was smiling but what I failed to tell her is that was Lordy reminding her, inspiring her to listen to what Him, what He wanted her to do.  I don't think it was guilt, it was being more sensitive to Lordy's presence..

The business of sucking up to..

This image has no relation to the text, but it is too colorful that it lends
light to the post.  (I never said I'm smart ha ha)

There is  a TV drama that I so enjoy, it is "Eli Stone", the lead character, Eli was just a regular - driven attorney who will stop at nothing to win his case.  Note the "regular" term used, until he was diagnosed with aneurysm, then everything changed. He would have visions of the future, which changed his outlook in life.  Made him a total suck up to Lordy, a good - guy will all intentions of helping.

Well, we had our share of being a Lordy - kiss the you know what "no disrespect intended".  We got carried away with the desire to please God that we were so intent in helping that we almost cross the line.  Sounds weird huh!. 

At what point should we help and not take over?
Does that involve giving up part of our lives too?
What is the motivation?
Does it make us compassionate or self-absorbed?

I'm telling you even in the most compassioned moment darkness can befall unto us.  This reminds me of an instance when I was disatisfied with the way things were going on at work that I hastily left, good thing it was time for mass, which gave me an opportunity for reconciliation.  I asked the priest, why despite my close relationship with Lordy, I am feeling that way.  He said in no uncertain terms that the reason is I have detached myself from God, from living like Him. He reminded me of the Franciscan teaching that the boxed images of our childhood, the expections of others, separates us from living like Him.  But that doesn't mean that we have to be a pushover, we can still stand up for our rights and what we believe in just for the right reasons. Ovcourse cryola akitch!

Then I have friends who feel that they should remunerate others for their goodness, those who may have been negatively affected because they're smart and therefore moved ahead.  Now, if I look at the premise upstairs this can be a case of sucking up too huh.. sipsip to Lordy as the Pinoys will call it.. ha ha kidding..

And Katie Couric said that, "inner peace is overrated." Hah!