Monday, April 30, 2007

dilemma again

some friends here in our office organized an outing for us. they have been planning for almost a month now and i was yet to confirm that i am coming with them. i was so oblivious that i am already included in the list of people who will be coming. it was just brought to my attention today. it seems like i dont have much of a choice.

the previous days prior to today, my close shift friends have been busy convincing me to come and i have politely declined and told them that i need all the money i could save up for the extraction of my impacted wisdom tooth. all this time, i have psyched myself that i will be watching spiderman 3 on my off and never expected that i will soon be in the beach of morong, bataan.

i told my mom last night that my officemates are bargaining with me for the sake of coming with them. they badly want me around. hehehe...

binabantaan na ang buhay ko ni rej. pag di raw ako sumama, di raw ako mag-o-off this thur-fri. gagawin daw nyang tues and sat. hahaha... grabeh... mukhang wala na ako choice nito ah! hahaha!

Saturday, April 28, 2007

a painful experience

last thursday, i finally had the chance to have my lab tests and ultrasound at makati medical city. the area where they took blood from had a black bruise today and it hurts a little when you poke it. and yeah, i think i had developed hemorrhoids because of the transrectal ultrasound i underwent. in fact, i was really bleeding during that day and i had to undergo that pain twice because the sonographer had to send me to the comfort room to pee. today, i am really having a hard time when i go to the comfort room to poo. the result of the ultrasound says that i have polycystic ovaries. i have yet to find out what's the next thing to do because the results of my blood test will not be available until friday next week. so, i'll see my OB-GYN next week. i hope.

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im not really in the mood to blog today. will blog more tomorrow. :)

Tuesday, April 24, 2007

i've been planning to wake up early to go to makati med and undergo a battery of tests in connection with the checkup i had last week. i was supposed to go last monday morning but due to some odd reason, i am so sleepy that day and decided against it. i scheduled it again this morning but again i am so lazy and sleepy when i woke up. so as expected, it was cancelled for the second time. finally, i have decided to file a vacation leave tomorrow so i can spend the entire day for that. i just hope everything's going to fall into their right places. wish me luck kids. :)

Saturday, April 21, 2007

visual dna

fear and other stuff on my head

i must admit that these lab tests and transrectal ultrasound are sending creeps on me. yeah, i am afraid and this fear is coming from the fact that i might discover a fatal illness. oh well, i hope this is just a plain and simple hormonal imbalance. God speed. :)

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i had three of my teeth filled last thursday. i was not supposed to but due to my mom's much prodding, i gave in. oh well, she paid for it anyway but i would be paying her back once i have extra money. by the way, i need to save up 5k for the extraction of my impacted wisdom tooth. i hope i can have it extracted in time before it hurts like hell. :)

Wednesday, April 18, 2007

OB

as a continuation of my blog entry yesterday, i went to see the ob-gyn i was referred to. i was referred to her because of my irregular menstruation. she prescribed provera for 5 days while we wait for several laboratory exams and a transrectal ultrasound. yeah, i have to undergo all of those tests. good thing those are covered by our HMO. buti na lang i took the initiative to consult an ob-gyn while our hmo is still valid. ngayon ang problema ko na lang ay ang pambayad sa teeth fillings and wisdom tooth extraction ko. hay. it seems like my long awaited incentive will go down the drains without me knowing it.

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i was suppose to meet up abba, blythe and yoshie today. i already told my supervisor that i wont be around today because i have to meet some people in such a short notice. our meeting was just confirmed last tuesday and today, it was just confirmed that it was cancelled. hehehe... ganyan talaga kmeng magbabarkada. masama talaga pag pinaplano, di natutuloy. hehehe... so, i ended up going to work today. ok lang naman kse off ko na tomorrow. yahoo! :)

Tuesday, April 17, 2007

my teeth

i went to medical plaza in makati this morning to have a check up regarding some medical findings and recommendations from our APE. the only thing i was able to accomplish today is getting an oral prophylaxis. for the other stuff, i have to go back tomorrow to have myself checked. i was referred to go to makati medical city for my check up. yeah, i will wake up early again tomorrow. too bad.

good thing, i finally decided to get an oral prophylaxis today. i discovered that i have an impacted wisdom tooth located at my lower left jaw and i have to have it extracted. aside from that, i need to get some tooth fillings for my two superior molars just beside my impacted wisdom tooth and for my two superior pre-molars because my pre-molars have dental abrasions due to hard brushing. ang galing di ba?! kung kelan ka nagtitipid tsaka naman merong ganito. good luck sa akin. i might consider getting fillings first before i'll have my wisdom tooth extracted. i still have to save up for it. oh well, there goes my long awaited incentive. it seems like its going to be spent for a tooth extraction. goodbye dsl na ba?! :)

Monday, April 16, 2007

moving out

it was never in my thoughts that my mom and i are going to move out of our house this soon. i was expecting it by next year when our new house would be finally built after 4 long years of planning. however, due to an unexpected turn of events, it seems that we are moving out earlier than i expected.

my grandmom, my mom's primary sponsor during her wedding, came to our house this morning. she was asking us to move to her house to look after her two grandchildren because she works and lives in saudi arabia. she just comes home to the philippines to visit her children and grandchildren. my mom wants to take the opportunity to leave our place because it is owned by my lola on my father side. my lola (my mom's ninang) has all the good intentions of emancipating my mom from the judgemental eyes of my relatives. that is why when she asked me about the plan, i agreed at once. i think it is time for her to leave her worries behind and i hope she will be a lot happier in the new place we are going. i just dunno if this will push through. it will still depend on my mom and my lola. but whatever she decides on, for sure i will oblige. :)

oo nga pala, i need to start packing my things na rin siguro. di naman ako masyado excited noh?! hehehe...

Wednesday, April 11, 2007

a nice discovery

did you miss a lot of episodes of your favorite tv series or missed a good movie? worry no more and you don't need to get a copy of their dvds. you can find them here.

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i usually find myself staring in space these past few days while i am traveling going to work. my mind is filled with a lot of worries. i kept thinking on how i can get to bring home more money for our monthly finances. yeah, my current salary is just not enough for our monthly finances. given the fact that we have a monthly obligation in paying the property we are buying. getting a part-time job is an option but i dunno if i can handle it. i always wanted to try the homebased work that will need a broadband connection in your home. the downside is, i dont have a broadband connection at home and i have to have it installed still which will cost me of course money. ang hirap talagang maging mahirap. tsk tsk tsk. i am actually considering to work abroad instead. this time its for sure. i know my mom will be left alone but its for the best for the both of us. i just hope i can cope and hopefully, i will succeed. good luck!

Tuesday, April 10, 2007

babble

i haven't had the time to blog this past few days. the reason, i am so engrossed with neopets. hehehe... yeah, it's petty but i dunno what's with it that it is so addicting.

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i spent the holy week at home. i have work since holy monday to holy wednesday. my maundy thursday was spent mostly at home. in the evening of the same day, we went to our town church to spend time there doing a vigil for the "santisimo sacramento". my good friday was spent entirely at the church. we went to listen to the seven last words of jesus which lasted until 3pm. after that we attended the mass up until 5:30pm and waited for the procession to leave. we got home at about 7:30pm. it was a tiring day.

one of the most awaited celebration after holy week in my home town is "salubong". this is celebrated on easter sunday. "salubong" is a celebration of the reunion of the risen Christ with the Virgin Mary and is reenacted. a young girl inside a giant heart-shaped paper (it might look like a flower but the truth is it is a heart because it symbolizes the heart of the blessed Virgin Mary) is suspended in the middle of bamboo trellis which will facilitate the removal of the mourning veil from Mary's head. the four sides of the giant heart are mechanically opened by giant toy birds made of paper to reveal the girl inside. this will be followed by a traditional dancing of young ladies referred to as "kapitana" and "tenyenta". this is called "bati". this tradition has been celebrated in my home town since i was young. according to my father, this has been a long time tradition that has been passed through time.

though, i wasn't able to watch "salubong". my mom and i attended mass in antipolo where i saw pauleen luna, a tv personality, together with her family attending the same mass. after the mass, we went straight to the nearest mall to watch a movie like what we always do during easter sundays.

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ibang klase talaga ang holy week sa angono. bukod sa bawat isang angkan ay merong santo, maraming tradisyon na patuloy pa ring isinasagawa sa pagdaan ng panahon. ang unang pinagkakaabalahan ng mga magkakamag-anak pag holy week ay ang paghahanda ng kani-kanilang mga santo. mapapansin mo na agad pagpasok ng kuaresma na abala na ang mga tao sa pag-aayos at paglilinis ng mga andas ng kani-kanilang santo. i should know, kse parte ako ng isang angkan na nag-aalaga ng isang santo. yup, ung erpat ko. pero dahil sa mga nangyayari di na ko nakiki-envolve sa mga gawain nila. kada taon nga ata merong bagong santong ipinuprusisyon. un ngang mga apostoles natatandaan ko 2 lang sila tapos ngayon kumpleto na ata kaya ang prusisyon inaabot na nang humigit kumulang dalawang oras bago matapos. natatandaan ko nung araw mga sampu lang ata ang matatandang santo sa angono at kasama dun ang santo ng angkan namin.

mas ok sana kung nakakuha ako ng mga pictures nung biyernes santo kaya lang na-realize ko na bale wala rin kse di ko naman maka-capture nang tama ung moment dahil naka-point and shoot lang ako. siguro next time pag meron na ko mas magandang camera. :)

palagay ko, kahit saan ako mapunta, iba pa rin talaga ang holy week sa angono. :)

Saturday, April 07, 2007

lazy

too lazy to add a new post. i am currently busy with neopets. hehehe... will post soon. :)

Tuesday, April 03, 2007

tiramisu

i found an easy and inexpensive recipe of tiramisu. please read on:

INGREDIENTS:
Layers:
18 pieces MY San Grahams Chocolate (18 pcs = 225g Handypack)
1/2 cup black coffee (1 cup = 2 tsp. coffee, 4 tsp. suger, 1 cup water)
3 tablespoons rum (optional)
2 tablespoons sugar
Filling:
250 grams cream cheese (1 block = 250 grams)
1/2 cup confectioner`s sugar
2 tablespoons rum (optional)
1 cup all-purpose cream, chilled overnight (1 cup = 250ml brick)
2 tablespoons cocoa powder

PROCEDURE:
1. PREPARE LAYERS. Combine the black coffee, sugar and rum in a bowl. Dip the graham cracker crumbs in the coffee and rum mixture. Lay the soaked graham crackers on a dish. Reserve for use later.

2. DO COFFEE CREAM FILLING. In a bowl, whisk together the cream cheese and powdered sugar until light and fluffy. Add the rum.

3. WHISK the all-purpose cream in another bowl until it doubles in volume.

4. FOLD the whipped cream into the cheese mixture, making sure both are blended thoroughly. Divide into three equal parts.

5. LAYER. Lay 6 pieces of MY San Grahams Chocolate. Pour 1/3 of coffee cream. Spread evenly. Do another layer alternating crackers and cream. Chill until cream is set. Sift with cocoa powder on top. Serve.

more recipes here.

Monday, April 02, 2007

new recipes to try

Chicken Burger

A leaner, healthier burger seasoned with herbs and spices to make it more interesting and different.

Ingredients:
1/2 kg. ground chicken
1/4 cup cored seeded and finely chopped red pepper
1 tbsp. chopped parsley
1 tbsp. chopped wansoy leaves
1 tbsp. minced garlic
1/4 tsp. dried thyme
1/8 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. MAGGI Chilli Sauce
1 piece MAGGI Chicken Broth Cube
12 pieces hamburger buns toasted on the grill
mayonnaise
dijon-style mustard
lettuce tomatoes & cucumber for garnish

Procedure:
1. Prepare medium-hot fire in a charcoal or gas grill.
2. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the ground chicken with the next 8 ingredients. Divide mixture into 12 and form into patties.
3. Place the patties on a well-oiled grill. Cook for 10 minutes or until done, turning once. Burgers are done when the juices run clear, prick to test.
4. Serve immediately on buns that have been toated on the edge of the grill. Top burgers with the mayonnaise and mustard and your choice of garnish.

Nestlé Cream Fruit Shakes (Mango Shake)

Ingredients:
1 cup mango cubes
1/3 cup NESTLE Cream
1/2 cup ice crushed

Procedure:
1. Combine all the ingredients in a blender.
2. Process for 30 seconds to 1 minute until smooth.
3. Pour into a glass, adding more crushed ice if desired.

Mango Shake

Ingredients:
1 piece ripe mango
6 tbsps. CARNATION Non-Fat Milk
1/2 cup water
ice cubes

Procedure:
1. Combine all ingredients for shake and pass through a blender for about 2 min.
2. Serve with crushed or cubed ice.


Green Mango Juice

Ingredients:
1 large green mango pared & diced
1/2 cup sugar or to taste
dash of MAGGI Savor
1 cup ice-cold water
3 cups shaved ice

Procedure:
Put all ingredients in blender; process for 1 min. Pour in four chilled glasses.


Fruit Shake

A basic recipe to a healthy drink for breakfast or snack.

Ingredients:
1 cup fruit in season (mango melon or guyabano) sliced
6 tbsp. CARNATION Non-Fat Milk
honey to taste
enough cold water/cracked ice to suite desired consistency

Procedure:
Combine ingredients in a blender and process for about 1 min. Serve on chilled glasses.


French Toast

Ingredients:
2 eggs slightly beaten
1/2 cup CARNATION Evaporated Milk
1/2 tsp. cinnamon powder
6 pieces bread sliced
1 tbsp. butter

Procedure:
1. Combine eggs, CARNATION Evaporated Milk and cinnamon in a bowl. Dip bread in the mixture.
2. Melt butter in pan; fry bread slices until golden brown.
3. Serve with butter and syrup or fruit preserves.


Pastillas De Leche

Ingredients:
2 1/4 cups NIDO FULL CREAM MILK
1 300 ml. can CARNATION CONDENSADA
2 tbsps. butter melted
1 tsp. dayap rind (optional) grated
1/4 cup sugar

Procedure:
Combine first four ingredients mixing very well until it can be handled. Flatten mixture between 2 wax papers. Roll with rolling pin to about 1 cm. thick. Cut into strips and roll in sugar. Wrap individually in colored cellophane.


Seafood Chowder

Ingredients:
6 slices bacon diced
1/4 cup butter
2 tbsps. chopped celery
1 cup thinly sliced leeks (use some of the top)
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 tsp. curry powder or to taste
250 g. fish fillet cubed
12 pcs. large shrimps shelled and deveined
2 MAGGI Chicken Broth Cube
3 cups fish
1 1/2 cups shelled mussels (about 1 kg. with shell)
3 tbsps. flour
2 medium potatoes pared and diced
1 170 g-can NESTLÉ CREAM
2 tbsps. parsley chopped

Procedure:
Stir-fry bacon in a 2-qt saucepan until crisp. Remove and set aside crisp bacon bits. Add butter to bacon fat and saute celery and leeks until soft. Stir in seasonings and fish. Cook until fish whitens. Add shrimps; cook until shrimps are pink. Dissolve MAGGI CUBES in 3 cups hot water; pour into sauteed mixture with fish or mussel broth. Add mussels. Dissolve flour in small amount of water; stir into mixture. Add potatoes; simmer until potatoes are cooked. Remove from heat and stir in cream. Serve hot garnished with chopped parsley and crisp bacon bits.

Seafood Pasta

Ingredients:
3 tbsps. butter
300 g. squid cleaned & cut to rings
200 g. shrimps peeled and deveined
100 g. scallops(optional)
4 cloves garlic minced
5 pcs. tomatoes blanched peeled & minced
1 tbsp. tomato paste
1/3 cup CARNATION EVAP combined with
1/3 cup water
1/8 tsp. dill(optional)
sugar
500 g. pasta cooked

Procedure:
Melt butter and saute first 4 ingredients. Add next five ingredients and season to taste. Simmer about 5 min. and serve over hot cooked pasta.


Special-Grilled Chicken

Ingredients:
2 pcs. chicken breast deboned & flattened
1/2 cup CARNATION EVAP soured with
1 tbsp. calamansi juice
1 tsp. ground oregano
1 MAGGI CHICKEN CUBE
2 tbsps. chopped spring onions
1 tbsp. olive oil

Procedure:
Marinate chicken in the next 6 ingredients for about 2 hrs. Broil chicken, basting it with marinade every 10 min. until golden brown. Serve with baked potatoes.


Stained Glass Dessert

Ingredients:
3 boxes fruit flavored gelatin (preperably lime orange strawberry)
1 1/2 cups Graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter melted
2 tbsps. unflavored gelatin
1/4 cup tap water
1 cup cream cheese
3 eggs separated
3 tbsps. lemon juice
1 tsp. lemon rind grated
2 tbsps. sugar
1 170 g. can NESTLÉ CREAM

Procedure:
Prepare flavored gelatin according to package directions. Chill until set and cut into cubes. Set aside. Combine cracker crumbs, sugar and butter. Reserve half a cup of mixture and press the rest on the bottom of a springform pan. Refrigerate for about 20 minutes.
Soften unflavored gelatin in tap water for about 2 minutes or just until it swells. Melt on low fire then set aside to cool. Beat cream cheese until softened. Slowly stir in eggyolks, dissolved gelatin and the rest of the ingredients except egg whites. Beat until free of lumps, set aside. Beat egg whites until stiff but not dry. Fold in gelatin cubes and beaten eggwhites into cream cheese mixture. Pour into prepared crust, sprinkle top with reserved crumbs and chill until set.

ang dami noh?! goodluck sa akin kung magagawa ko talagang subukang lutuin silang lahat. hahaha...

holy week

the lenten season has begun last february 22, ash wednesday, but i didn't realised that the last week of lent is already here until i noticed the extreme hot temperature yesterday. yeah, the sun's scorching heat is here again. i really dunno what it is with the holy week that it seems to be hotter than the usual or is it just a psychological reaction.

it was palm sunday yesterday and i had to take a leave again just to be able to attend mass. yeah, ireally dont have a lot of time to attend mass every sunday because i have work during that day and honestly, i really have to make time for it because my mom prefers to attend mass in antipolo cathedral. most often, i can't get up early in the morning because my shift ends at 10pm and i usually fall asleep at 2am.



while we were in antipolo cathedral yesterday. i took some pics of the cathedral.


i will try to take more pics of the cathedral when we go back on maundy thursday. i hope i can take pics on easter sunday, too during the salubong in my home town, angono, rizal. i hope i can get up early to witness it. it usually starts at 4am and i usually fall asleep at 2am so good luck. hehehe...

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Holy Week in the Philippines (text taken from wikipedia.org)

In this largely Roman Catholic nation, Holy Week, known as Semana Santa, is treated as one of the most important religious festivals of the entire year. At Mass on Palm Sunday, Catholics carry "palaspas" or palm leaves to be blessed by the priest. Many Filipinos bring home the palm leaves after the Mass and place these above their front doors or their windows, believing that doing so can ward off evil spirits. Holy Monday marks the beginning of the Pabasa (literally, reading) or Pasyon, the marathon chanting of the story of Jesus' life, passion, and death, which continues day and night, for as long as two straight days. A popular Holy Thursday tradition is the Bisita Iglesia (Church Visit), which involves visiting several Churches at which the faithful would pray the Stations of the Cross. The last Mass before Easter is also celebrated on Holy Thursday, usually including a reenactment of the Washing of the Feet of the Apostles; this Mass is followed by the procession of the Blessed Sacrament before it is taken to the Altar of Repose. Good Friday in the Philippines is commemorated with street processions, the Way of the Cross, the commemoraton of Jesus' Seven last words (Siete Palabras) and a Passion play called the Sinakulo. In some communities (most famously in the province of Pampanga), the processions include devotees who self-flagellate and sometimes even have themselves nailed to crosses as expressions of penance. After three o'clock in the afternoon of Good Friday (the time at which Jesus is traditionally believed to have died), noise is discouraged, bathing is proscribed and the faithful are urged to keep a solemn and prayerful disposition through Black Saturday. Easter morning is marked with joyous celebration, the first being the dawn Salubong, wherein large statues of Jesus and Mary are brought in procession together to meet, imagining the first reunion of Jesus and his mother Mary after Jesus' Resurrection. This is followed by the joyous Easter Mass.