A Different Approach to Fasting

Got an e-mail from Ate Carrie with this attachment. I loved the message, so I'm posting it here. It's something we can apply in our daily lives.

An Amazing Phone Conversation

Ok, ok. So it was not really a life-altering kind of amazing conversation. Rather, it was a phone conversation I had with the clunks - Marc Nelson and Rovilson Fernandez. They're one of the two Philippine teams that participated in the second season of the Amazing Race Asia. So I felt I needed to somehow use the word amazing. ;)

Thanks a bunch to Lyza (I owe you one!) for calling, and to Summers for just passing on the phone to Marc without any warning! Hehe.

It was fun talking to them! I was expecting just a brief, hi-hello-bye kind of conversation. Afterall, what do you talk about with someone you've never met? But they were really friendly and accomodating that I ended up talking to them for a few minutes. I'm not very good at small talk, but felt at ease talking to them immediately (especially with Rovilson who was quick to crack jokes) -- I guess as hosts, they're used to engaging people into polite conversation. =)

It was a kilig moment for me... showbiz na ko! Hahahaha! =P

(Edited 14 March 2008 to include some excerpts and pic)

I don't really remember much of my conversation with Marc. A lot were just small talk, but the way we started our conversation was a bit embarrassing for me.

Marc: Hi! Who's this?
Me: This is Ivy. Who's this? (Hahaha, I wasn't really expecting Summers to pass the phone on to Marc... was actually thinking she was going to ask someone there to pretend to be Marc and talk to me.)
Marc: Umm, this is Marc. (Summers said Marc had a confused look on his face while he said this. He's probably wondering why I'm asking who he is when Summers told him someone wants to talk to him!)
Me: Oh, she really passed the phone on to you. I thought she was just pulling my leg when she said that. (O ha, bawi ako kunyari!)
Marc: Yup, she really did!
...
After a couple of minutes, we said bye and then this exchange:

Marc: Do you also want to talk to Bad Boy?
Me: Bad Boy? Is that Rovilson's nickname?
Marc: (Laughs) It is now!
...
Now my conversation with Rovilson, I remember a bit more clearly:

Me: Are you eating? (He seemed like he was chewing on something so I had to ask. Hehe)
Rov: Yes, we're having dinner. So come on over and join us!
Me: Sure, just send me a plane ticket and I'll be there!
Rov: (Laughs) Umm, why don't I just order food for you and send it over, how about that?
Me: Ok, that works too!
...
Me: You should join the Amazing Race US version.
Rov: I know, I want to.
Me: You're eligible, right?
Rov: Yes, yes I am. But Marc isn't so we have to figure out a way to do that. I know, why don't you marry Marc so he can apply for a US citizenship and then we can race?
Me: SURE! (err, little lie here... that's not exactly what I said to Rovilson. I said something quite embarrasing which I'm taking to the grave with me! =P)
...

Chocolate By the Bald Man

I've been meaning to go to Max Brenner for a while now (afterall, it's all about chocolate -- who wouldn't want to go to a place like that? =P). So when Wena suggested that place for a Saturday brunch, I readily agreed! =)

As soon as you enter the café, you'd be hit with the aroma of chocolate. And the entire room had a wannabe-Willy-Wonka-Chocolate-Factory feel to it. We were lucky that when we got there we were given a table immediately, as a few minutes later the crowd came pouring in and we saw a long line of people waiting to be seated.

Max Brenner aims to be a dessert place. So I didn't really have high expectations about the entrées. But we were all pleasantly surprised with our food. I had the Chicken Paella and it was Y-U-M-M-Y! It had generous portions of sausages in it too. But uh-oh, it was only after I got home did I realize I've just eaten pork... oops, there goes my no-red-meat-for-Lent resolution!

It was a little difficult to order dessert as there were a lot of interesting choices. We decided on the Tutti-Frutti Waffles and Max's Three Layer Chocolate Concoction with Toffee Bananas (whew, that's a mouthful!). I wanted to try one of the crepes too, but we had too much food already. But no regrets, the desserts we ordered were both really good! Our tummies were definitely happy! =)

The service is not the fastest, but the staff were very friendly. But then again, with Baby Sam among us, it would be hard for anyone to stop by our table and not smile when they see my cutie inaanak! ;)

Shrimply Delicious!

I must say I've been eating a lot of seafood lately. Mainly because I said I'm going to give up red meat for Lent. So that leaves seafood, veggies and chicken. I'm not a big fan of the latter two, so seafood it is! =)

Here's a simple shrimp dish. In restaurants, it's more often than not listed as 'Grand Marnier Shrimp'. But it's also commonly known as 'Walnut Shrimp'. I didn't have walnuts, so I substituted pecans. I didn't eat the pecans though, I just added them for the picture! Hahaha!

GRAND MARNIER SHRIMP

Ingredients:
1 dozen medium-sized shrimps, shelled and deveined
2 large eggs (egg white only)
4 Tbsps corn starch
3 Tbsps mayonnaise
2 Tbsps honey
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1/2 Tbsp condensed milk
canola oil, for deep frying
pecans, for garnish

Heat oil in a small sauce pan.

In a bowl, mix together the egg white and corn starch. Dip the shrimp in the batter. Make sure you coat each shrimp well. Once oil is hot enough, put the shrimp in the pan one piece at a time. Make sure you don't overcrowd them. Fry until golden brown in color. Put in a plate lined with paper towel to seep out the excess oil.

In a separate bowl, mix together the mayonnaise, honey, lemon juice and condensed milk. Dip each shrimp in this mixture to lightly coat them. (As an alternative for those who are tamad like me, dump all the shrimps in the bowl, cover it then shake until the shrimps are well-coated with the mixture.)

Put the shrimps back on the plate and garnish with pecans.

Best eaten when hot para crunchy pa! ;)

Serenity

A white butterfly
Flying o'er a host of white roses
It rests on a petal,
Losing itself.

Weird Friday

Friday after work, I stopped by the library to return some DVDs. So going home, I took the V-train from the Bryant Park stop instead of my usual Lexington Ave station. As usual, the train was crowded as it was rush hour. But I was lucky enough to grab a seat. I immediately fell asleep. Twenty minutes later, I woke up to find the subway car empty except for a couple of people and me. I got disoriented as I've never seen the V train that empty before I get off my stop. The doors were already closing when I saw the station we were in -- 2nd Ave. The train I was on went downtown (I was supposed to go uptown)! So I was second guessing myself. I was pretty sure I waited on the right track and got on the right train. So what happened?!?!

Anyways, since I was going the wrong direction, I immediately got off the next stop to transfer to the uptown train. That's where I got even more confused because I saw that I was already on the uptown track! I checked the map and true enough, the train I just got off from was actually going uptown. What the heck was going on?!?! I was almost tempted to ask people what day it was to make sure I was still living in the present! :P

Still not sure what happened. My guess was the uptown train somehow changed course and went downtown instead. But then, since by the time I woke up it was travelling uptown again, does that mean it changed its route again? Shesh, all that happened in 20 minutes?!?! And I slept through it all?!?! It felt as though I entered bizarro world. Ah ewan! =)

On a more normal note, it snowed Friday morning. Too bad it started raining by the middle of the day so we didn't get the expected 4 feet of snow. There was still enough snow on the ground for us to go to a park during our lunch break and have some fun though. =)

Craving for Mangoes

If I have to choose what food from the Philippines I miss most, I would have to say it's mangoes! The big, ripe, yellow, juicy ones! Yum-yum! Sadly, none of the mangoes available here can compare. I pretty much tried all the imported mangoes they have here but they all suffer in comparison -- not as sweet, not as juicy and too fibrous.

Thinking of mangoes also makes me think of the mango shake in Boracay. Can't get enough of those! Every time I go to Boracay, drinking mango shake with every meal is a must! ;)

Seeing as I'm in a mango state of mind, I decided to bake mango mousse for dessert. Besides, I have been meaning to play around with the mini-cheesecake pan I purchased and I knew this would be a perfect cake to bake in it. And I was right, it produced several perfect single-servings of the mango mousse! And to top off my mango mousse dessert, I even had mango juice tonight. Overkill, I know. But at least it satisfied my craving for mangoes... for now. =)

Happy Hearts Day!

To mark today's occasion, let me share this poem by Rico Abelardo. I read this when I was in college. I think it was Bobby Guev(ara) who handed us a copy of this poem around Valentine's Day. Not really sure now. Anyways, I think it's one of the better Valentine poems I've read as it celebrates not the lovers, but love itself.

mangyari lamang ay tumayo
ang mga nagmamahal
nang makita ng lahat
ang kagandahan ng mukha ng pag-ibig
ipamalas ang tamis
ng malalim na pagkakaunawaan
sa mga malabo ang paningin

mangyari lamang ay tumayo rin
ang mga nagmahal at nasawi
nang makita ng lahat
ang mga sugat ng isang bayani
ipadama ang pait ng kabiguan
habang ipinagbubunyi
ang walang-katulad na kagitingan
ng isang nagtaya

mangyari lamang ay tumayo
ang mga nangangambang magmahal
ng makita ng lahat ang kilos ng isang bata
ipamalas ang katapatan ng damdamin
na pilit ikinukubli ng pusong lumaki sa mga engkanto at diwata

mangyari lamang ay tumayo
ang mga nagmahal, minahal at iniwan
ngunit handa pa ring magmahal
nang makita ng lahat ang yaman ng karanasan
ipamalas ang mga katotohanang nasaksihan
nang maging makahulugan
ang mga paghagulgol sa dilim

at sa mga nanatiling nakaupo
mangyari lamang ay dahan-dahang tumalilis
papalabas sa nakangangang pinto
umuwi na kayo
at sumabatan ang mga magulang
na nagpalaki ng isang halimaw

at sa lahat na naiwang nakatayo
mangyari lamang ay hagkan ang isa't isa
at yakapin ang mga sugatan
mabuhay tayong lahat
na nagsisikap na makabalik
sa ating pinagmulan

manatiling masaya
at higit sa lahat
magpatuloy sa pagmamahal

Cookies, Anyone?

I must say that though I love baking, I've never really baked a lot of cookies. I think it's primarily because most recipes usually give a yield of about 3-4 dozen cookies (too much!), and I feel like a lot are going to waste if they don't turn out well. And since they usually have an odd number of eggs in the ingredients list, it's hard to half the recipe. But I've always wanted to try my hand at making different kinds of cookies.

Last Christmas, I saw the opportunity to try out a few cookie recipes. I baked a few batches of different cookies, put a few pieces of each in a small plate, wrap it in Christmas-designed foil paper, tie it with a ribbon, and voila! An instant Christmas present for my co-workers. Not bad -- I got to try some cookie recipes and spread some holiday cheer at the same time! ;)

Earlier this afternoon, I was trying to organize some of the recipes I've printed out from the internet. I saw a really old print-out for Mocha Rounds recipe from the Land O'Lakes website. It seemed simple enough so I decided to give it a go.

I didn't have the white chocolate baking bars, so I used white chocolate morsels instead. I only had a couple ounces of the semi-sweet chocolate bars on hand, so I used a Hershey's Bar for the chocolate dip. I don't really like the taste of vegetable shortening, so I omitted that one and just opted to melt the chocolate by themselves. I also made a few boo-boos while measuring the ingredients - I used half a teaspoon when measuring the baking powder and salt insted of a quarter teaspoon stated by the recipe. In the end though, they still turned out really well! You may want to follow the original recipe, but I don't think my goof-ups and substitutions actually hurt the cookies (although I wouldn't recommend using Hershey's Bar for this purpose - they're yummy but don't really harden once you've melted them so handling the cookies becomes a little messier than needed). Why they ended up having a cracked texture look to them, I'm not exactly sure. I would probably skip the white and chocolate dips next time. They look prettier after dipping them, but I actually liked the cookies by themselves. =)

Making Do Without for 40 Days

I went to church today and stood before a priest. He dipped his finger into a bowl full of ashes, put his finger upon my forehead and whispered:

"Remember, from ash you came, and to ash you shall return."

It's Ash Wednesday today, the first day of the Lenten Season. Being born and raised in a predominantly Catholic country, I have taken it for granted that everyone around me knows the significance of the ash on one's forehead. But walking home from work today, I felt a lot of curious eyes towards me. They're all probably wondering why I'm walking around with dirt on my forehead. =)

I usually try to give up something during the 40 days of Lent. This year it's coffee for me. I realized that I've been drinking coffee almost everyday for the past several months! Walking to work from the subway, I pass by a Starbucks store (they're everywhere!) and I always end up buying coffee. Even on days when I tell myself not to, I still somehow get drawn inside the store. I guess that's what being addicted to something feels like. Darn that caramel macchiato -- it's just so yummy! =)

Last month, I have resolved to stop drinking coffee starting in February. Well, at least to limit my coffee intake to just a couple of cups a week at the most. But what do you know, the very first day of February, I find myself buying yet another caramel macchiato on the way to work. Arrrggghhh. So I am glad that now I have to "force" myself to stick to my resolution. If making a sacrifice for the Lord is not enough to motivate me, I don't know what will. =)

P.S.
I somehow feel like a cheater for sacrificing something I want to give up anyways, so I have decided to give up eating red meat during Lent as well. Maybe next year, I'd be able to give up eating meat entirely. =)