Mango Pearl

I Have a New Home

2007-05-30T20:27:00.000-07:00

Mango Pearl has moved to a new home, simplybelle. Please come and visit me when you have the time. I will treat you to delicious home-made cookies and some hot tea. Thank you!

Our Memorial Day Drive At Roosevelt

2007-05-28T13:50:00.000-07:00

First off, I would like to familiarize my blogger-friends with what Memorial Day is (thanks to Anna for pointing that out). Memorial Day is a United States holiday that is observed on the last day of the month of May. It is the day we pay tribute to our men and women who had died while serving our country, the USA. Flag are flown half mast (ooops)in government and federal institutions as a sign of respect to our heroes.

During memorial day weekend, many people from different places in AZ, mostly from the cities, flocked to our place, which boosts higher elevations and cooler climate. Visitors camp out by the river, in the mountains or anywhere that is cool. Our main road, grocery stores, gas stations are jam-packed with people. It is like a madhouse. Sometimes, it is best to just stay home until the crowd has subsided.

This Monday morning, we decided to go for a long drive to Roosevelt lake which is about an hour-drive from home. I promised my friends to check on her vacant house once a month while they are away. We made sure that the drip system in the yard was in good working order. Of course, I took the camera along so I could take many interesting views along the way. I noticed that the lake is loaded with motorhomes, trailer, boats, and cars from all over places. There are so many activities that are taking place from boating, fishing, jet and water skeing, camping, and just merely sightseeing.

Roosevelt Lake was once the largest man-made lake in the world. When it is full, it can cover more than 88 miles of shoreline, big enough to hold large crowds. It is such a beautiful and popular place to cool down and to frolic around during hot summer days.

We have good memories in this lake with family and friends. When we hadn't sold our boat, we liked to spend our weekend here boat riding while the kids jumped in and out of the boat and swam like little fish until their lips turned purple and puckered. We also used to go fishing here and caught quite a bit of good-sized crappies.

My husband took the above two pictures of the lake and me.

Boats, motorhomes, and trailers crowded the shoreline for the memorial weekend.

This is the marina where people in the area store their boats.

The arch bridge was completed in 1990 right before the Roosevelt Dam was rebuilt

The Theodore Roosevelt Dam was built in 1903 for irrigation, electrical power, and recreational purposes.

Graduation

2007-05-24T22:03:00.000-07:00

Payson high school football field.

Today was a very special day because it was a day my daughter, Lexie, was graduating in high school. The graduation ceremony started at 7 PM sharp but Lexie left the house at 4 PM. We only live about a couple of miles away from the high school, which takes about 7 minute-drive. At 6 PM, I was in the back porch watching birds and hummingbirds roaming around in the garden like little helicopters.

At 6:30 PM, we got in the car and headed down to the high school football field where the graduation was about to unfold. It was a good thing we came early as the parking lots were getting filled quickly. The graduates were already starting to assemble behind the gate. I looked around searching for Lexie amidst the crowd but couldn't locate her. I wanted to get a shot of her before we proceeded to the seats. Just as I was getting comfortable in my seat, I decided to go back where the graduates were gathering in an attempt to find Lexie again so I could take her graduation photo. With the sun blinding my vision, I had no luck finding her. Just when I was about to give up, I suddenly heard someone yell out, "mommy!" amongst all the crowd's noise. It was Lexie. I quickly took a couple of shots and went back to my seat.

When it was time to sing the graduation song, I saw Lexie and a couple of her friends stand up and join the rest of the choir at a far corner. Then, I heard a familiar voice. Lexie was singing! It really caught me by surprise. Her voice filled the football field. It sounded good! I turned to my husband and he had a proud look on his face or so it seemed.

Next was the presentation of scholarship awards. I wasn't expecting much from our local community because my eldest daughter didn't do quite well 2 years ago. The most I anticipated were two awards only. Surprisingly, I heard her name called, not once, not twice, but five times, worth a $1,000 or more each. Another big surprise! Thank God!

As the ceremony was about to end, we decided to advance down to the sideline of the football field and leaned against the fence because my husband was exhausted from sitting. I asked him what he thought of his daughter singing. "What singing?" he responded. "You were not aware it was your daughter singing a while ago?" I asked. "No!", he answered. "Why didn't you remind me", he added. "I thought you knew just from the sound of her voice" I said. Hehehe, yes folks, he missed it.

Upon arriving home, he asked Lexie to sing the song again to refresh his memory. It all came back to him. Thank goodness. hehehe.

Note: The football field was quite a ways out. I had the camera with the telephoto lens on so I had a good look of her from afar. Also, my husband had trouble hearing in one ear.

Lexie happily marching

Lexie singing the graduation song, "You Raise Me UP."

"You Raise Me Up"

When I am down and, oh my soul, so weary;
When troubles come and my heart burdened be;
Then, I am still and wait here in the silence,
Until you come and sit awhile with me.

You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains;
You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas;
I am strong, when I am on your shoulders;
You raise me up... To more than I can be.

There is no life, no life without its hunger;
Each restless heart beats so imperfectly;
But then you come, and I am filled with wonder;
Sometimes I think, I glimpse eternity.

You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains;
You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas;
I am strong, when I am on your shoulders;
You raise me up... To more than I can be.

You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains;
You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas;
I am strong, when I am on your shoulders;
You raise me up... To more than I can be.

You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains;
You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas;
I am strong, when I am on your shoulders;
You raise me up... To more than I can be.

You raise me up... To more than I can be.

Lexie receiving scholarship awards

A close up pic.

Payson Hummingbirds

2007-05-22T20:18:00.000-07:00

I took these pictures this afternoon while relaxing in the comfort of my back porch. They were fascinating to watch!

To all my blogger-friends, the perpetually moving jewels of Arizona!!!

Arizona Flowers, Birds, etc.

2007-05-20T15:00:00.001-07:00

I have been enjoying taking pictures of everything that is around me. This morning, still in my morning pajamas and sans my morning tea, I went out in the backyard with the camera dangling around my neck.

Then later in the afternoon, my husband and I went for a ride around town and took whatever subject struck our fancy.

And ladies and gentlemen, here they are:

I just planted this Petunia in the pot a week ago.

Yellow gold flowers

This particular flower thrives in extreme hot climate of downtown Phoenix.

I have been admiring these flowers right where I deliver mail for a while. I just love the bright red color.

Wildflowers

I finally got a picture of a hummingbird flying in mid air.

This hummingbird flew on the tree branch right above where I was standing. The picture turned out to be bigger than its real lifesize.

A Raven on top of the Saguaro cactus sippping nectar, I supposed.

A deer that never strays off.

I took a picture of this hammock because my daughter in college can't wait to get home and do a lot of reading in this hammock this summer.

The Graduate

2007-05-19T20:38:00.000-07:00

My daughter, Lexie, is graduating in high school next Thursday. Oh, how time flies by so quickly. Not too long ago, she was just a timid little girl entering kindergarten, hiding behind daddy's legs. Now, she is all grown, ready to be boomeranged to college.

I took a whole week off and plan on spending the best of it with her. I might throw a small party the following day after graduation. Why the next day? Graduation is going to be held at 7 PM and so by the time the graduation ceremony is over, it will be a little too late for a party.

Last Tuesday, we attended her last spring concert at school. I didn't realize she was singing a duet of "Travelin' Soldier" with a friend. They sang really well.

Three graduating students from the modern choir were honored with a certificate and a pin by the choir teacher. One of them was Lexie.

When I went to work the following morning, I received bright and congratulatory wishes from my co-workers. It caught me by surprise as I don't subscribe to our local newspaper. Apparently, she was chosen by the Kiwanis Club, as the "Student of the Year" and the "Most Improved Student of the Year" by the PHS teacher. Kiwanis is a group of volunteers from the community dedicated to changing the world one child at a time. I asked Lexie what she did different this year that merits this recognition. She wasn't sure. She thought she worked just as hard in the previous years both in academics and community service. I gave her a pat on the back for a job well done.

She then asked her daddy to mount the plaque on the wall adjacent to her sister's "Young Woman of the Year" award.

A Tire Blow Out on the Highway

2007-05-14T08:04:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, a friend of mine and her husband met us at a restaurant in the valley for a Mother's day lunch. There were five of us: me, my husband, A, my friend, and her husband. The food was great! We banqueted on steamed crabs, raw and cooked oysters, clams, mussels, yummy duck, lechon, sushi, fish, barbeque pork, chinese dumplings, and many more. I could only eat so much. I didn't even eat rice. I was stuffed! My husband had his fill.

After lunch, we went on our separate ways. My friend went to Costco, while my daughter and I went shopping in the mall. My husband stayed in his usual favorite place..the bookstore. I purchased a cute blouse for myself and my daughter bought two cute summer blouses. Then we headed home.

We were maintaining a speed of 67 miles an hour on an uphill grade when we suddenly heard a big blow, immediately followed by the thumping and banging noises. We were within several miles from our town. My husband said, "hold on! hold on!" while he tensely tried to hold firmly on the steering wheel. I didn't know what was happening. The car was shaking so bad, accompanied by a pounding noise. I was scared! We never experienced something like this before. I looked back and saw a woman pull over to the side. I saw pieces of tires flying all over. I looked over to the other side of the road and saw a big drop off though there was a railing to protect us. Eventually, the vehicle started slowing down and my husband was able to begin to apply the brakes and quickly pulled over on the shoulder. My husband warned us to never slam the brakes when a blow out happens so we will not lose control of vehicle and cause it to swerve all over the road. Wait until you regain control of the vehicle, then you can start applying brakes. He also cautioned not to panic. Also, it is best to maintain a safe distance from the vehicle in front of you.

We got out and saw the tire totally ripped off. The wheel's well was broken, too. We were all shaken! We started unloading the back of our vehicle to search for the tools for changing tire. Since we bought this vehicle nine years ago, we have never used the jack, the tire arn, etc. It tooks us a while to figure out how to unhook the doughnut spare tire. My husband tried poking in every hole he could find with the tire arn and eventually found the right one and unravelled the spare tire.

First, we put rocks behind each wheel to stabilize our vehicle. Next, we loosened all the knots to the tire before raising the jack. Some people would apply the jack first before loosening the knots. Not a good idea because if you lift the jack up, the wheels will be hanging in the air, then when you try to loosen the knots, the wheel spins or the jack could shift off while loosening the knots and the vehicle could crash to the ground and might even hit somebody.

Suddenly, I saw another vehicle pulled over behind us. They were my friends. They passed us on the highway and was unable to stop so they looked for a safe place to turn around a few miles away and came to the rescue. It felt good seeing them. Earlier, I was hoping that they would see us and somehow they read my mind. He helped my husband finish installing the tire.

We drove slowly home while my friend kept a good distance behind us to make sure we were okay. We noticed that there were three other vehicles which also experienced a blow out right about in the same area. I wondered why. We stopped on one of the vehicles and offered help. A guy driving a motorcyle who also cared to stop thought that it might have been caused by the heat outside making the tire swell and blow out. It could also be that the tire was defective.

What a Mother's day experience! Hope you know what to do when faced with this situation.

Note: our four tires are only a year old.

The Largest One-Day Food Drive In the Nation

2007-05-12T17:28:00.000-07:00

First, I would like to thank all my blogger-friends who sent me emails and greetings for Mother's day. Happy Mother's day to all of you! I, along with my co-workers, were extremely busy today collecting food as we were delivering mail to help hungry families. This is a yearly event and is the largest one-day food drive in the nation. Last year, carriers collected about 70 million pounds of food nationwide--one of the biggest. Locally, we accumulated about 6,000 pounds of food and were quickly transported to our local food bank to replenish empty pantry.

So, for those of you living in the US, did you remember to set out food by the mailbox?

Yes, we do have families who are using or have used the food bank to survive. A chinese friend of mine lived off the food pantry for a brief period while going through separation. There are more people out there who are in dire need of food but too embarrassed to tell their friends and relatives about. It could happen to anyone of us anytime, any day, hence, the importance of giving.

Here is the conversation I had with my friend D concerning the food drive later this afternoon:

D: How did you do?

Me: Slow in the business part but I made up in the residential area. I picked up about 10 buckets of food. What about you?

D: Not too good. Those rich people neglected to set out food.

Me: {laughing and murmuring to myself) I wonder if they even knew what was going on.

Probably, most people were not aware of it. Believe it or not, my husband didn't know about it. I know we sent out cards to the customers reminding them of the food drive. Likewise, we had it announced in our local radio station, and even had it published in our local newspaper. My husband only reads first class mail, the rest, he tosses away in the brown file, which explained his unawareness. But hey, if for some reasons, you missed it, no big deal. You can still donate non-perishable food at your local food bank.

Taken Saturday morning along with my gorgeous co-workers. Can you find Waldo, este, Belle, in this picture? (geeesh, I forgot to suck in my abs and halata bang gusot ang damit ko? hehe)

I cleaned out my pantry last night and found these unused cans and boxes and asked my husband to set them out by the mailbox.

The next pictures show the food waiting for pick up.

I should have gotten more food than what is in this truck but my supevisor drove through my some parts of my route and picked up whatever food left out, which was a big help.

Backyard Creatures

2007-05-09T22:21:00.000-07:00

Took these pictures today.

These are the birds that come in our backyard on a daily basis. They love our bird baths. First, they come and take a bath, turn around and poop in it, and take a nice big drink. Ehew!!! How unsanitary!

Has anyone of you seen hummingbirds? If not, look at the first two pictures. See, how small they are? They are the smallest birds in the world, about ohhh, 2 inches in length. They can only be found in north and south America. They are known for their ability to hover in mid-air by quickly flapping their wings. They are the only birds that can fly backwards. They can hover stationary, too. Talking about agility! They are a delight to watch especially those with interesting colors. So far, we have two hummingbirds in our backyard, but later in the summer, they come in droves and in different kinds.

Sometimes, there are 4 or 6 hummingbirds vying for a place at one feeder. Males are very aggressive and territorial. They will chase anyone hovering around their feeder and this goes on all day. I often wonder how those less aggressive ones get their meal.

This Black Chinned hummingbird finally sneaked in and had a chance to get his meal without getting chased by Anna, the aggresor. He/she must be scaring other one or must have dozed off. See Anna in the next picture.

I presume, this is Anna because of the iridescent pink colors on the head. You can barely see it. Click on the picture for better image.

I believe the next two pictures are gold finches. Finch is shown doing his usual bath-poop-drink routine.

Lovely gold finch on the Juniper tree. Juniper tree, by the way, gives out pollen that affects most people here including myself. We can't escape from it because our forest is surrounded with it. Nasty tree!

I carefully took this picture of the quail through the blind from my bedroom.

Oink! Oink!

2007-05-06T10:23:00.000-07:00

As suggested for posting by my dear hubby.

kamote lifted at http://www.philippines.hvu.nl/vegetables1.htm

On the way to Virac, at Tilod, Baras, my husband spotted a pig alongside the road. Stop! Stop! he yelled. "I want to take pictures of the pig." Well, we had cooked kamotes in our car that we enjoyed eating for snack as they were delicious. You know when you have been away for so long, this root food suddenly becomes delightful.
When I was young, I usually complained when my mother fed us kamote for breakfast before going to school.

I whined "kamote na naman!

"It won't help me get through lunch especially I have to walk 3 kilometers to school in the morning" I added.

Well, I could either starve or force myself to eat it. On our recent trip to bikol, ironically, I mainly stuffed myself with this kind of food. It even appealed to my Japanese and American friends to the extent that they even favored it over any other popular local goodies to bring to Manila for our baon. What so funny is, while in hotel lobby, my friend offered kamote to one of the filipino guests only to be refused. I told my friend, kamote is considered a peasant food. She was completely surprised because not only it is preservative-free, sugar-free, organic, cheap, delicious, and at this day and age when obesity is rampant and health problems are on the rise, this food is nothing but good stuff. We ate it with fresh shredded coconut flakes and lato. It reminded her of Japanese white potato.

I got sidetracked...let me finish my story...

Anyway, my husband took the kamote and fed the pig with it. The pig looked customarily hungry, not wanting to deny any handouts, a beggar at heart. We were yelling at my husband not to feed kamote to the pig on his palm as the pig might chomp on it. Of course, he ignored our warnings. Evidently, he knew what he was doing as he raised horses before. He cupped his hand so it would be safe. The pig ate the kamote out of his hand and oinked for more...oink! oink! oink! I said "that's enough, save some for our hungry stomachs,"

In exchange for food, the pig was kind enough to pose for some pictures. He was accomodating and leaned up against the pen to show off his body. My husband and my American friend had a blast! They thought it was cute! The villagers were wondering what was so cute about that creature that all it does is eat, eat, root, and oink all day long.

Of course, he oinked him a thank you.

Noni Juice, a Miracle Treatment

2007-05-05T19:37:00.000-07:00

Date rolls and dried figs...all raw.

Yesterday, my husband and I went to the city to buy his food supplies (healthy stuff), and to dine out in our favorite restaurant. We went on a Friday, my day off, so it was just the two of us. We would have come in three had we gone on a weekend. A was thoroughly disappointed but she figured she couldn't miss classes as there is only a few weeks before graduation.

We decided to swing by at the health food store before we did our grocery shopping. I didn't want to go inside because I might just end up buying expensive stuff that we seldom use. My husband insisted I come just so he would not be alone pushing the cart. I stayed for a while in the car deciding if I should come in or not. Then, blogging came to mind. Aha! I could take pictures of his purchases and share it with my blogger-friends.

The store was pretty crowded with narrow isles, crummy, and kind of smelly emanating from herb products and other weird stuff. Now, you know why I was reluctant to go inside. I had the huge camera with me, by the way, too conspicous for the shoppers but I didn't let it bother me as long I minded my own business. I browsed around the isles, finding something that would interest me. Colorful juices on the shelves caught my attention...blackberry juice, green juice, pomegranate juice, naked juice, carrot juice, grape juice, blueberry juice......and NONI juice. Noni juice? I remember a friend of mine has been preaching about this product years ago. I listened but never really took her seriously. I was already hooked on a different juice called odwalla that contains a lot of properties beneficial for our body. Besides, she told me the product was kind of pricey.

"Why not give it a try," I murmured. $18 is affordable and with a dose of 4 tablespoons a day, I should get a lot of use out it. Not bad! I brought it to the counter where my husband's groceries were and had the saleslady ring it up. My husband saw the price and thought it was pricey for a juice. He said, No! With my stern look, I said, Yes! And he acceded. Ha!

I took 2 tablespoons of juice right away since the instructions prefer that it is to be taken on an empty stomach. I hadn't eaten my breakfast because I was saving it for the big meal. Then, on the way home, after several hours of running around in the mall, I took 2 tablespoon again. The product is laced with taste enhancers like guava juice so the taste is bearable. It would probably even appeal to the taste buds of the kids.

That night, I felt somewhat different. My nose wasn't clogged as it has been. I have been suffering from severe allergies that started in February and it can linger until end of May. I have tried all kinds of over the counter homeopathic medicines but I never really found the remedy that I was looking for. But now, I finally can breath again through my nose! What a great feeling! It feels heavenly! You know what it is like when your nose is completely clogged? Even drinking water was like a chore. It felt horrible! But now, thanks to NONI, I can breath again.

If you would like to know more information about this product, you may do your own research. Just type in Noni juice. P.S. (I am not paid to write this post.)

Mourning Dove

2007-05-04T18:45:00.000-07:00

When my husband was reading his book in the front porch overlooking the golf course, he saw a bunch of straw lying on the corner of the porch. He was about to remove it when he wondered where it came from. He looked up above at the vent where the gas fireplace came out of the house and saw the nest. Sure enough, there was a mourning dove laying eggs. So, what do you do? You leave them alone until they are done doing raising their brood and let them raise their chicks.

Suddenly, I heard my husband yelling

"Hurry! I think I might have a good blogging material for you!" my husband yelled.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Just hurry before it is too late and bring the camera!" my husband ordered.

What a cozy and comfortable place to lay eggs. I took picture here and there and she didn't seem to be bothered by the commotion we were making. The partner was looming around waiting probably for his turn to sit on the eggs but couldn't do the switcheroo as my husband was right below reading. Ahhh, they shouldn't be doing their business up there anyway as it is not good for the house. S stayed in the porch as long as he wanted and if they wanted privacy, they should look somewhere else like out in the wooods. But...you know how they are.

The Story of a River-- Reflections of a Young Woman

2007-05-01T20:33:00.000-07:00

Excerpts from an essay composition that we could all learn from--year 2002.

I am like a river because my life has been a gentle yet somewhat rough flow of experiences that have shaped and molded me into the person that I am today. Just as the river begins as a nebulous rush of water but gradually shapes a distinct path, my life has gradually been shaped through trial and error. However, a river cannot flow without the help of the eroding sands beneath it, and I, too, have had people who have helped me and changed their ways in order to provide me with the best path available.

In all of my turning points and realizations, I chose not to dwell in the past, but, rather, learn from it to prepare me for the future. It is just like a river that never flows backwards--it always continues forward. When an obstacle gets in its way, it either goes around it or flows straight through it. However, a river cannot form without something to shelter it on three sides. My parents provided me with this protection.

My mother was a big influence on me because she taught me how to live comfortably while still appreciating everything. She grew up destitute on a tiny island in the Phil. Just like me, she did not date boys at an early age and was a tomboy. She worked very hard at school and strived to please her parents. She made sure that these values and ideals were instilled in my sister and me. Growing up, she did not shower me with lots of money so I would learn to spend wisely. She always shed tears of joy each time I won an award--even at my lousy choir performance.

From an early age, she taught me how to cook and clean. I have always been helping in the kitchen--baking, cutting, grating, washing, etc. Nowadays, I am too busy to do these things, but I liked doing it when I was little because it made my mom so proud. Now that I am almost going to college, I will know how to care for myself.

My father, on the other hand, always rewarded me whenever I did something good. Whenever I got good grades, he would give me money or a treat. This pushed me to always do my best. I do not get treats anymore from getting good grades, but I have been molded into doing my best that it is now automatic that I put a 100% effort into all my work. He also strives to keep me on the right path by putting me into interesting programs such a piano, ballet, and tap dance.

Throughout the course of my life, I have not paid much attention to how I believe I am perceived to be. I think that I am still learning and still flowing through life. I believe I am wise but a little dumb, friendly, kind, and funny. In the future, I want to be someone that a younger child would look up to. I want to be able to live life happily and hot have any regrets. I know I will go through many more experiences and obstacles, but I just hope that I will go down the right paths. I would have never become the person that I am without other people to help me. I am even thankful for the kids who bullied me, who made fun of me throughout my life because without them, I would never have grown wiser and stronger.

My attitude towards life is a very optimistic one. Since I am lucky enough to have had a wonderful upbringing, my future will only get better. I still believe to this day that no matter how much you practice your religion, what really matters is whether you reflect your belief onto others with kindness and caring. I know that love and happiness are much more valuable than money or possession. I still believe that a person who has many friends and no enemies is richer than a person with a million dollars.

I once heard a story about a little boy talking to his grandma. The little boy asked his grandma what were the ingredients to make a cake. The grandma said they were yeast, sugar, flour, and eggs. The little boy, disgusted, said those ingredients were gross and could not fathom how they could transform into a delicious cake. The grandma replied saying even the worst things can turn into something quite delightful. Just like troubling times can turn crisis into opportunity. After all, a river is made of tiny little atoms, bacteria, and dirt. What is more beautiful is a sight of a crystal clear river running through a beautiful forest.

Garden and its Surroundings

2007-04-29T14:48:00.000-07:00

View from my living room. If only the electric post was not in a way, view would have been better.

Our fig trees are doing well this year as evident by the fruits all over its branches.

This is the pear tree that is void of fruits this year.

Another tree, plum tree, that was caught by early frost. This tree hasn't produced at all and am hoping it will someday otherwise...

This is the garden that my husband was trying to cultivate. I will join him as soon as the danger of early morning frost is over. I have the seeds ready like ampalaya, opo, etc, that I ordered through catalog. Hopefully, they will thrive in our area.

Since I will be pressed for time this week, I might as well take advantage of my Sunday to post as many posts as I could. We will be short-handed at work this week so no day off for me for sure. But then again, I might actually have a day off. Let' see.

The moment I got up this morning, I noticed how pleasant the morning was. I looked through window, and the scenes outside looked so inviting. So, still in my pajama, I came out with my camera. Ohhh, the weather was nice and comfortable. I was hoping I would be able to capture some hummingbirds hovering the feeder in our front porch but no luck. Summer time though, they come in droves and in different species. Fun to watch and they are so cute and just beautiful!

Our trees are doing well although some of them have no trace of fruits at all this year. The frost might have gotten the buds earlier. Fortunately, they bloomed at a different time so some of them, like the bartlett pear and few apple trees, were spared. But the asian pear, my favorite tree, was one of the unlucky ones. Oh well...

My husband has been trying to start a garden this year but some creatures have been nipping the seedlings and it can be frustrating. I told him to cover it with cheesecloth until they are big enough. Let's see if this will do the trick.

Homemade Jewelry

2007-04-29T11:06:00.000-07:00

This was intricaly soldered piece by piece out of a gold wire. Notice, no two flower designs were the same?

He made this necklace out of gold nuggets that came from Oregon, alternated with manufactured 14K gold chain.

He carved this in wax and made a mold of it, casted it in bronze and gold plated it.

This is a reversible pendant, one side was made of torquiose and the other side was made of onyx(see next picture). Chain was handmade. I notice that the silver chain and the frame that surrounds the stone need polishing badly.

The pendant is an iridescent Russian jade. It changes colors as it catches the light. With this piece, all he did was mount the pendant but didn't make the chain.

With these rings, he carved them in wax first, made a mold of them and casted them in gold.

There was a time when X company was downsizing and laying off workers right and left, so my husband thought he better protect himself by picking up another trade in case he was one of those unfortunate ones. So, he took a series of jewelry making classes at the Community college which offered a jewelry making program for a couple of years. Fortunately, he never got laid off but he never took the jewelry to a higher level.

Jewelry making became his hobby while he continued working for the X Co. He would immerse himself in the jewelry room and tinker for hours. It was interesting watching him but it was something I couldn't picture myself doing. It looked so complex, intricate, and required steady hands, which I didn't have. But seeing the beautiful creations made me appreciate what he did. "Did you make it yourself?" I often asked. "Of course!" he answered with pride.

Dinner and American Idol

2007-04-25T21:54:00.000-07:00

While waiting for the American Idol much awaited result, I whipped up some healthy and savory dinner. The show had so much commercials and fundraising in between for two hours, so to make time more useful, I spent half of the time in the kitchen. One good thing about having a kitchen and dining open floor plan, you can cook and still be able to see what is going on in the living room.

I usually don't cook elaborate dish because my husband is on special diet, my daugher is very choosy of the foods she eats, and so I often find myself digging for leftover in the refrigerator. Tonight, I was all pumped up and ready to get dirty in the kitchen, eyes fixed on the television part of the time.

Tofu and Shrimp Stir Fry dish came to my mind. Lucky, I had all the ingredients in the refrigerator: cube of tofu, shrimps, pechay (bok choi), lots of garlic, ginger, soy sauce, sweet soy, and chinese vinegar.

It came out really delicious! It was so easy to fix, and it is healthy. If you want the recipe, please let me know and I will try to come up with one, otherwise, bon appetit!

Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:

tofu
shrimps
pechay
light soy sauce
sweet soy
chinese wine vinegar
thin strips ginger
crushed garlic

Per the picture, cut the tofu into cubes of your size preference. Marinate in generous soy sauce, 1 T (tablespoon) of sweet soy, and 1 t (teaspoon) of wine vinegar, strips of ginger, and lots of crushed garlic for half an hour.

Put 2 T of olive oil in pan and brown the tofu cubes on each side on medium heat.

De-shell the shrimps, (de-vein if you wish), and add some soy 1 T of soy sauce, 1 t of sweet soy, 1/2 t of wine vinegar, and 1 t of cornstarch. Let it soak for 5 to 10 minutes.

Wash pechay and cut into bite size. I like to blanch it in hot water with a teaspoon of oil before I add it to the dish the last minute.

Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in the pan, add garlic, and ginger from the tofu marinade, and fry it gently until golden brown. Add the shrimps, stir fry until brown. Add the browned tofu, the veggies and mix all together. The cooking shouldn't take long. For gravy, use the tofu marinade, add some broth liquid or water to make 1/4 cup. Add a heaping teaspoon of cornstarch and mix well. Add to the dish and let it thicken and mix everything together.

Remove from pan and pour it on the serving plate. It should look like this. You may add some chopped green onions for garnishing.

Note: I just poured out whatever it felt right so the measurements that I gave you may not be accurate especially for the gravy. On this particular dish, I used light soy.

Graduation Photos of my Two Darling Daughters

2007-04-23T20:50:00.000-07:00

I have been meaning to post graduation photos of my daughters but being a computer illiterate that I am, I kept putting it off. I have been begging my youngest daughter to walk her mother step by step on how to scan pictures, and she finally gave in.

"Okay, put the pictures in the scanner and I will be there shortly," my daugher said.

I quickly went to my bedroom where my computer is located and did exactly what she told me.

"I wonder which way should I position my photo?" I murmured.

"This way, mom!" "Thanks!"

Finally, I can get to showcase my daughter's graduation photos to all my friends, blogger friends, that is. As a mom, I am allowed to brag about my daughters once in a while, right? Well, A, who is graduating in high school this May, belongs to the top ten percent of the graduating class. Mom and dad are proud of her. She will be receiving an award on April 26 and so whether it is a working day or not, I always make time for this occasion. One good thing about our boss is he is very accomodating and understanding. A recently recieved a tuition waiver at a university in AZ, renewable every year through the four years, depending on whether she can maitain a certain grade point average. Am keeping my fingers crossed...hehe.

The other picture is my other daughter S taken on her graduation two years ago. She had posted one of the highest point averages in the history of her high school. She was also chosen as the "2005 Woman of the Year" which was really a feather in her cap. She was the finalist for a National Merit Scholarship by obtaining an high score on the Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test she took 3 years ago. For more info. about her click on this:http://www.paysonroundup.com/section/localnews/story/18702

Pili Tree, Pili Nuts, Pili Sweets

2007-04-22T15:03:00.000-07:00

Familiar with this tree? It grows wild in the province. Can you guess what it is? Give up? It is a pili tree. My Japanese friend was so curious to see a pili tree while we were in the province so the moment we saw one, we stopped and we let her get off the car and relish the sight of it. She took all kinds of pictures. She asked if she could take pili nuts back to the US and I said, "I don't see why not!" You see, my friend has eaten pili sweets before because I brought her a jar of caramelized pili from the Philippines and she liked it a lot. She had this idea that she could grew this in Hawaii where her sister lives. It is probably true as Hawaii has a similar climate as the Philippines'. Unfortunately though, we didn't see pili nuts during our trip because our province just recently got hit by a super typhoon last November. Too bad!

When I was young, we would go to the mountains and we would climb a pili tree regardless of who owned it..hehe. Their pili trees were our pili trees, too, you know. I would de-shell it carefully so I wouldn't break the meat. I must say, I was good at it. And I would pop it in my mouth and savor its delicious taste. It didn't take much to fill me up because just like any other nuts, pili nuts are quite rich.

I lifted these next two photos from this site: http://www.marketmanila.com/archives/fresh-pili-fruit-and-pili-nuts, because pili nuts were not available when I visited the market or I didn't look hard enough. That is how they look when pilis are de-skinned. There are two ways of de-shelling the nuts. One is by cracking them open with a piece of stone and other way is by using a machete and applying just enough force to break through the shells but careful enough not to hit the meat. Then you slowly split them open.

These are the pili pods or the pili nuts. The skin of pili is one of my favorite appetizers in the province. We would submerge a dozen or so of pilis with skin in hot water for a minute or two and remove them right away and let the skin soften. The reason why you shouldn't leave them long in hot water because the skin tends to get saggy, hence, it will not taste good. The skin sort of remind me of olives and it is best when dipped in fish sauce or "patis." Delicious!

Caramelized pili is super super tasty! When I travel back to the province, I usually buy at least a dozen to give out to people but on this recent trip, I only bought a couple for my daughter. Amazingly, this is the only nut that my daughter can eat. So, I pamper her with pili delicacies when I make a trip to the province. Mind you, a jar of caramelized pili is not cheap. It costs php90.00 per jar, about $2.00, but it is all worth it.

These are Mazapan Pilis made out of pili nuts, condensed milk, cheese, and eggs. For me though, I prefer the caramelized pili as it tastes so much better and it doesn't have those rich artificial ingredients, which to me, alter the delicious taste of pili. The more natural it tastes the better, I think.

Village Life, Simply Life in Barrios

2007-04-20T21:09:00.000-07:00

My American friend who came with me to the province found the scenes below unique and worth capturing. Every time he came across settings like these, he would ask the driver to stop the car and go out and take his time to take photos of everything that fancied him. These things didn't normally mean anything to me when I was living in the province, but after about 20 some years of being away from home, looking at these take me back to the memory lane. It might strike you with wonder but what you see below are the things that I had experienced doing when I was a young girl. Yes, I did all those! I climbed the mountains barefoot on rainy days so I could have better grip of the slippery hills. I would dig my toes on the muddy soil and slowly walk my way up the hill where my parents were doing the abaca stripping. Haaay! those were the daysss....

Drying palay on the pavement is common in the rural barrios. It takes two good days to dry the palay completely before it is milled. Sometimes the whole road is covered with palay and the motorists try to manuever their vehicles to avoid running over it if possible.

I actually enjoyed doing this job with my friends because we got to have fun while looking for firewood. We ran around in the forest doing mischief with each other.

I would spend half a day in the river washing clothes with my bare hands. Since I had four brothers living with us, you can imagine how heavy the load was.

During my time, this is not how it was done. I would put a fair amount of rice stalks on the mat, and I would use my huge feet to rub the stalks off to remove the palay. Sometimes, it took my mother and me all day to finish the whole thing. It was one grueling job!

Ohh, I had done this job countless times. My mom (bless her soul) would wake me up in the wee hours of the morning so we could get a head start before others started showing up. You couldn't just turn down people those days as they had to eat, too.

Shown above is a man doing abaca stripping manually. This is one tough job as it requires a lot of strength to pull the stalks through the serrated knife to produce fiber.

Sonoran Desert in Bloom

2007-04-18T17:56:00.000-07:00

My husband and I went to Phoenix today to do some important errands and to return my daughter's prom dress to the mall. (See update on prom dress on the post below titled, "It is Prom Night." On the way over, I noticed that the desert was starting to show some colors. I came prepared for the photo shoot. I asked my husband to pull over on the side of the freeway so I could take pictures of the Sonoran desert. Sonoran desert, by the way, was barricaded with barbed wire to protect the cattle from reaching the highway. Soon, we saw ourselved crawling under the barbed wire. Here are some pictures that my husband and I took.

Note: All cacti have thorns, even the thornless prickly pear has invisible thorns, which are hard to see by the naked eye. Once it gets into your skin, it becomes painful and it is hard to remove. My husband went on a quail hunting one day and inadvertently got close to Cholla cactus. He couldn't remove the thorns and he was hurting so he ended up throwing away the good camouflage hunting pants. So, stay away from it as much as possible.

Buckhorn Cactus

Ocotillo cactus

Prickly Pear Cactus

Baby Barrel Cactus

Cholla Cactus

Dead Saguaro

Hedgehog Cactus

Barrel Cactus

Saguaro Cactus

Family Get-Together in my Humble Abode

2007-04-16T20:36:00.000-07:00

Two days before we flew back to Manila, I rounded up my nieces, nephews, brothers, in-laws, friends, and tourist in my hut for a cook-out, courtesy of my Japanese friend, E. Arigatu, my friend. My heart swelled with love and joy seeing my relatives around, especially those who I rarely see.

My relatives and I bumming around in front of my humble abode.

The kids swarmed into the table like bees. Good way of getting rid of the food.

My nieces and nephews playing scrabble. How nice of them to gather at a corner and be quiet for a change. Often times, I heard shrieking, crying, and lots of laughing.

Now, that explains why I gained some weight. I ate, slept, ate, and slept.

This is my dirty kitchen where most of the cooking preparations were done. It was so much fun and comfortable being out here.

Shown in the picture is my caretaker getting ready with the fire for barbecuing.

My brother and sister-in-law chopping and marinating the meat. They fixed "Humba", an ethnic filipino recipe and one of my favorite province dishes.

It is Prom Night

2007-04-14T18:38:00.000-07:00

Update: I took the prom dress today to Macy's mall in Phoenix for a refund or an exchange without the receipt. My daughter threw the receipt thinking that she didn't need to return it. Guess what? They were so apologetic about and felt so sorry for my daughter. Since they didn't have the same dress available on stock for an exchange, the manager gave me more money for what the dress cost, which will the cover gas and for the distress that it caused my daughter. I thought it was good business. Thanks Macy's.

Pahabol: this was taken on the prom night.

It is prom night at P High school. Daughter A is going to the prom again for the last time before she goes to college this fall. Things started out good. When I got home from work at about 4 PM, I saw her sitting on the couch applying nail polish on her nails and looked relaxed . She wasn't dressed up yet and so I asked why. She said, "it is only 4 PM and C is not going to pick me up until 6 PM." So, I let her be.

Then at 5:15 PM, she started applying make up and fixing her hair. I thought I was going to help her with the make-up, reason why I came home half an hour early from work. She said she could do it herself and could get it done in 15 minutes. She didn't need my help after all. Everything was under control until she was about to put her dress on. "Mom, look!" Oh my! The security tag was still attached to the dress. Macy has done it again. The salesgirl left the security tag on the garment. I knw those tags are impossible to remove except with a special tool. I tried yanking it on each side but to no avail. She then asked for daddy's help. Daddy immediately got up and headed to the garage. He found a plier and wedged it in between the tag. Suddenly, a yellow paint squirted all over her dress. It was an ink-security tag! "Oh my, what shall we do?" I tried washing it off but it made no difference.

Lexie remained calm while I felt devastated. I was mad! Mad at myself for failing to notice it at the store. Mad at Macy for not doing their job like they were supposed to. And why didn't we notice it before the prom? Why or why? All these reprimanding questions will certainly not help A on her prom night. A, however, never showed her frustration and remained positive about the whole thing. She said, "it is okay." I said, "let's just hope no one notices it."

Let's see if you can detect the marks on the last two pictures.

Arrrgh! What a disaster!

Taken on the rock lawn in front of our house.

Taken in the back porch.

The Beauty and the Beast

2007-04-10T11:42:00.000-07:00

Piece of sponge

Steve and the fisherman.

Old and flimsy boat.

My brother, me, and caretaker. I was holding beer for the camera just for fun...not a beer drinker at all.

I have been raving about the beauty of the beaches in Catanduanes, it is about time that I should blog about the danger behind its beauty. Just because it is beautiful doesn't mean it is safe. It happened three years ago in Puraran. It was the year when we came home to attend the wedding in Marilima beach, Virac Catanduanes. We were staying in Batag resort, Virac, Catanduanes for the night.

Suddenly, my husband, along with two friends of ours from the USA, decided to go to Puraran on the day of the wedding despite my objection. The wedding was going to be held late in the afternoon so he figured he had plenty of time to get back in time for the wedding. The travel to Puraran was about 2 hours from Virac, one way. They left in a van fairly early in the morning and took my brother along with them as a guide.

They came back rather late. I was getting upset and worried. He looked so tired and his face was all red. I reckoned he spent all day frolicking on the beach. Our room where we stayed in was full of people already getting ready for the wedding. He went in and asked for his clothes so he could take a shower. He dressed up for the wedding in no time. Suddenly, I saw him sitting on the couch in the living room dozing off despite of how busy and noisy the place was. I let him be as the wedding was not going to start until approximately an hour later. I thought it was good that he took siesta before the event.

I asked for the change of the money I gave him on his trip to Puraran. He said, "I will talk to you about it later." Fair enough, I thought I would catch him later that night in bed and besides I was preoccupied with wedding matters.

As night came, I asked him again what happened to the change. He said, "it is gone, I did some good deeds with the locals." I was actually happy of what I heard and was proud of him of being nice to the less-fortunate. The topic ended and we flew back the following day.

Six months later, Joe popped on my YM, asking me strange questions like "has S been nice to you lately?" or has S been acting different lately?" I immediately suspected something was wrong but I just couldn't pinpoint it. At first I thought he found a girlfriend in Puraran, but I knew he wouldn't do that as the idea seemed farfetched. Joe wouldn't disclose what happened and led me in circles for some time despite my ceaseless prodding. He probably couldn't believe why my husband hadn't told me about the incident. Finally, after wheedling for truth for some time, I finally persuaded him in confiding in me. Here's the rest of the story as told by my husband.

I was wading in about no more than one foot of water, too shallow to actually swim in and was looking for deeper water to swim. There were no surfers or fishermen in sight. About 50 feet away, I saw what looked like deeper water on the reef, so, I dove into the water using the piece of foam and paddled toward it. Then as I swam, I noticed that I was being swept outwards, I paddled as hard as I could, but suddenly the water was over my head and I was being carried out into the deeper ocean. The bottom was going by faster that a man could ever run. I paddled as hard as I could but it made no difference.

Suddenly, I could hear the breakers in front of me instead of behind me. Now, I was on the other side of the white breakers and was caught in the big swell of the Pacific Ocean. It bobbed me around like a cork. I was plenty scared at that point. All I could see was ocean and breakers between me and safety.

Long time went by and I was getting very tired. Some of the waves were splashing oer my head and I was breathing water and coughing. I could feel a cramp coming along in one of my legs, my body temperature was going down slowly, and the blood was leaving my appendages to warm my core. Furthermore, the current was carrying me to the right side where the breakers were crashing visciously against the reef; I knew it was just a matter of time before I would be battered against the coral. Somehow, the piece of sponge that I was carrying and the extra pounds contributed to my flotation in the water for at least an hour, according to Joe, a friend, who came with us.

Then Junior, my brother-in-law, waded out a ways into the water, carefully, as he did not know how to swim and beckoned me to come in. It was very noisy with the waves so all I could do was gesture with my arms for him to save me. I said, "boat!" "boat!" and he didn't know or hear what I was saying and continued to wave me in thinking that I was out there having fun. Since I didn't come in, he waded up closer and found some rocks where he could walk yet even closer. I shouted with all my energy and at the top of my lungs to get a boat, above the noise of the waves. His eyes open widely when he realized that I was in trouble. He immediately ran back up to the resort.

After the longest time when I had completely given up hope and was saving my little energy for when the waves crashed me against the reef, I saw two natives pulling a canoe to the water, which gave me new HOPE. I watched them row the canoe through the channel in the coral and they seemed to head out to sea instead of coming over to me. I waved frantically but they kept going. I figured they were two fishermen who were not going to bother picking me up. I said to myself, "if they save me, I am going to give them one heck of a good tip." Then, they circled toward me and approached from the rear where they themselves were safe. In order to get myself into the canoe, one of the natives had to jump out in the water and hung out on the outrigger on the far side to counter balance the weight while I struggled to get into the flimsy canoe. While the two locals paddled the canoe, I bailed water from the canoe. We finally made to shore, to safety, and once I had calmed down, I gave them all the money I had on me, in exchange for my life.

Note: the boat and fisherman in the above pictures were my husband's saviour. All beaches are dangerous. Always wear a life vest, or bring a surfboard, boggie board, or inflatable raft before venturing in the water. Just because you are a good swimmer means nothing.

CNA Typhoon Reming Relief Operations

2007-04-09T19:25:00.000-07:00

I just recently brought these pictures from Catanduanes taken during the CNA Typhoon Reming Relief Operation held last January. CNA means Catanduanes Net Association, an association of Catandunganons based on internet located all over the world. I am currently on the second year serving as a president of this association.

Upon realizing the magnitude of the damage in our province brought by the super typhoon Reming, I took bold initiative of seeking donations from Catandunganons and friends from all over the world. I also authorized the release of CNA emergency funds intended for typhoon victims in the province. I organized a concert in our local cafe featuring my daughters to help our own people in our barrio who lost their homes completely. I even went knocking at my in-laws and friend's doorstep to seek monetary assistance when I found out one of my brothers lost his dwellings, too. I was desperate and driven.

The response was, as expected, favorable.I thanked God for the support that I received from our community, Parish Church of St Teresa of Avila in Nevada, kindhearted individuals from all over the nation, and from my own family. Through my blog, I would like to extend my warmest thanks and appreciation to all who supported us.

Out of the funds we collected, we were able to procure

sixty (60) sacks rice
ten (10) sacks sugar
seventy-one (71) boxes noodles
forty-two (42) boxes CDO cbeef
thirty (30) boxes sardines
two (2) bags plastic bags

Red Cross volunteers did the sorting and re-packing of the goods, each bag containing

three (3) kgs rice
three (3) sardines
five (5) noodles
two (2) sotanghon
two (2) cbeef
half kg sugar

One thousand one hundred twelve (1,112)bags of goods were processed. Red Cross did the actual damage assessment of the barrios that were selected to be the recipient of goods based on their criteria.

Ivan Arcilla, our CNA representative, supervised the whole proceedings excellently.

Barrio Kids

2007-04-05T20:33:00.000-07:00

Not only did I have fun photographing the breathtaking sceneries in the province, I was equally amused capturing the beautiful smiles of the children. The girl above is from remote mountainous place in San Miguel, Baras. I loved visiting her place because it is so peaceful and beautiful, which reminds me of the scenes in the movie, "Sounds of Music." I promised her that I am going to send her this picture by mail and was so tickled about it. In this picture, she was eating "tubo ng niyog."

Included in the next picture are my nephews Rap-Rap (middle) wearing blue shirt, and Jhonnie (barely showing) who is seated to the left of Rap-Rap. One of my goals is to supply these kids with games, books, and communication tools to hone their reading and writing skills at an early age.

The next three pictures were taken in Agban, Baras where one of my brother lives. For some reason, kids had a fascination about camera, they swarmed in around my friends like bees in no time. Glad, they left me alone. I was busy scouting the area in the hope of finding baby coconuts. Poor Bob and Elaine..they had to put up with those prying kids though they seemed to enjoy it.

Puraran Sunrise photos

2007-04-03T19:34:00.000-07:00

As requested for posting by my dear friend. I enjoyed going to the beach in the early morning (5:30 AM)to avail of the catch of the day and to take photos of the beautiful Puraran sunrise. The above photos were taken when the fishermen were just getting back from their fishing trip.

While still in bed, half awake, I glanced at the sky through the window and saw this beautiful golden cloud formation. I got up quickly and walked out on the deck with my camera in tow.

I hung around for a while after I purchased the fish and took these last two photos. One good thing about digital camera, you can take as many pictures as you want and delete the ones you don't like. If I get one good picture out of 10 shots, am a happy camper.

Hooked Dorado Leaps and Walks on its Tail.

2007-04-02T16:56:00.000-07:00

My husband had been fishing offshore in Puraran and had had no luck. He was getting frustrated so I arranged a fishing trip for him with one of the local fishermen in the area. He left at 5:30 AM and came back with 3 huge dorados aka mahi-mahi after 3 hours. He said, dorado was fun to catch. It is a powerful and strong fish and dances on its tail on the surface when reeled. We fixed several scrumptious dishes out of it. Mahi-mahi is one of those fish that is wonderful just about any way you want to prepare it. Pan-fried mahi-mahi, coated with flour, was, by far, the best.

My Japanese friend who came with us on this trip fixed a sashimi dish out of fresh dorado. It was so good! She brought some seaweed wrappers, wasabi, and vinegar straight from the US to make some sushi dishes. It was surely a treat though my relatives were not brave enough to even try it unlike me who ate quite a bit and so was the male Japanese tourist. Yum! I didn't realize fresh dorado makes good sashimi dish. Another equally sumptuous dish prepared by our driver was the pickled dorado. It is perfect for hours de ouvres.

As early as 5:30 AM, I would head down to the beach to wait for fresh catch of the day. I avoided freezing fish. To maintain the delicate flavor of newly caught saltwater fish, I had the fish clean and cook right away and I kept some in the refrigerator for dinner. Hmmm, fish tasted so much better. I just had to control my appetite for fear of gaining weight. All I did was eat, sleep, swim, and walk a little. I never lifted a finger in the house. My relations pampered us and did all the chores. Of course, I paid each one of them generously.

More Photos of my Trip to Catanduanes

2007-04-01T16:40:00.000-07:00

Taken in Batalay beach. Before my arrival, I asked my brother to build me a hut and it took only a week to finish. We spent a great deal time boating in our inflatable boat to see the countryside. That is me in white blouse.

It has been 4 months since the super typhoon Reming ravaged our beautiful island.
Though it is starting to look beautiful and green but it will take a while for our vegetation to completely recover. This particular lot used to be covered with coconut trees loaded with baby coconuts. On this trip, I didn't get to enjoy eating baby coconuts at all. Darn!

Batalay beach was where I spent half of my trip. This beach may not be as beautiful as Puraran beach because of the color of the sand but the water here is nice and calm and the bottom is gravelly. I didn't have to worry about big waves. It is a gentle beach.

My village taken from atop.

The next 3 photos were taken near Puraran beach. We went further down Puraran in our rented van for sightseeing. Visited my brother who lived just several miles away. Too bad, the road isn't completely paved,it would have cut our drving time by 2/3. On the other hand, I don't really care if the road is paved or not because it will definitely bring a lot of changes to the province. I like it more laid back the way it is.

Typical Puraran Kids

2007-04-01T13:01:00.000-07:00

While vacationing, I wandered off in the village of Puraran with my camera in tow. I took pictures that struck my fancy. The boy above caught my attention right away. He was wheeling a "kareton", a toy made out of bamboo, which he used for transporting drinking water home.

You see how happy these kids were even with no wealth. Notice, one of them was shoeless? But, not for long as she will have her pair of sandals soon.

Out of curiosity, I followed these little kids and was amazed at my discovery...their beautiful hiding place. This is where the kids get their drinking water which they call untreated natural spring water. The moment they arrived at the scene, they made themselves comfortable by sitting on their favorite spots. I thought it was cute.

Isn't this little girl cute? I love how I captured her beautiful smile in picture.

With all containers filled, she was getting ready to head back home, walking barefoot again on the loose gravel...just imagine that.

Virac Market

2007-03-31T22:41:00.000-07:00

The moment I arrived at Virac, I immediately headed down to the market to buy our food supplies. I stocked up on lots of veggies, fruits, rice, bottled water, etc. as my beach hut is too far away from the city. It takes about an hour and a half to get to my place. If it could be avoided, I preferred not going to the city. I just wanted to stay in Puraran and enjoy the ocean, the calming breeze, and soothing sounds of the waves. I liked to explore places I haven't been too, like the Dororian falls below. I liked to sit along the beach and wait for the fresh-caught fish from the fishermen and hopefully catch the beautiful sunrise in picture.

FRESH PICTURES FROM MY TRIP

2007-03-27T20:17:00.000-07:00

I spent most of my vacation time in Puraran. This particular picture was of Puraran beach taken from above.

Dororian falls, a barrio of Gigmoto where my brother works as a principal. The place is vehicle accessible and water is clear and refreshing. No entrance fee required. But I doubt anybody can find this place as it isn't known to many yet.

This photo is taken from the deck of my house.

Taken early in the morning when my in-laws took a dip.

I took this picture of Puraran sunrise when I headed down to the beach to avail of the fresh-caught fish at 5 AM.

Hello friends,

Thought I would update you with breathtaking pictures of my trip to Catanduanes for now while I am in Manila.

Take care you all.

Steffi's Post

2007-03-14T23:31:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

My parents are in the Philippines right now. They have limited access to the computer, so my mom asked me to make a few posts.

Right now, it's nearly finals week-- a very busy time for everyone at Stanford! Ironically, my sister decided to come at this time. But it's been very fun having her here. She's been going to the gym every day, eating healthy foods, and sleeping early. My mom would be proud. One thing she refuses to do is go to class with me. I don't really blame her, because sometimes I refuse to go to class too. Haha.

Okay, anyway, here are some pics:

We took this outside the bookstore, next to the fountain. The weather has been beautiful these past few days, in the 70's.

We had dinner at my mentor's house (in Stanford, you can get assigned a mentor if you want one). We made lumpia, pansit, adobo, and kasava cake. Oh goodness, I'm getting hungry again just thinking about it.

Beach Wedding

2007-03-08T16:00:00.000-08:00

Dine, I found a picture of myself happily marching and enjoying the resonating excitement of such a picturesque wedding.

If you own a beach right infront of your home, and you are about to marry, would you consider holding your wedding on it? Ces, my inaanak sa kasal did just that. She orchestrated the whole proceedings, with the help of her friends. She did a wonderful job! The sea breeze gently touching your hair, the sunset lighting the horizon in red and yellow, and the palm trees adding exotic touch to the venue, made the wedding ceremony beautiful and romantic

I love how she decorated the altar with bougainvillas of different colors and right behind is the beautiful ocean. How romantic!

The parents and the witnesses.

The wedding bells

This is my favorite scene at the wedding. Who would have thought that the cake would look good on the stump of the tree? That tree came from a school site and was considered to be an eyesore and was about to be uprooted. The bride saw it and knew exactly what to do with it.

Turon with Cinnamon

2007-03-07T06:54:00.000-08:00

I had friends over at my house last week and I thought of serving them some filipino delicacy. I saw some ripe Saba bananas in my fruit basket and turon first came to mind. I remembered I had a package of lumpia wrappers in my freezer so I quickly thawed it out.

My friends were watching me in the kitchen while I was preparing the turon. I sliced the banana into three equal parts, lengthwise. I rolled one slice over a pre-mixed brown sugar and cinnamon powder, I added a strip of ripe jackfruit (from the jar I bought in oriental store). I rolled it up and sealed the ends of the turon with water.

I didn't use much oil because I only cooked a small batch, reason why it had spots on them, probably from melted sugar at the bottom of the pan.

You know what, my American and Japanese friends loved it. My husband thought it resembled the taste of an apple pie. It disappeared quickly from the table.

Breathtaking Unadulterated Sceneries in Catanduanes.

2007-03-04T10:13:00.000-08:00

I thought I would showcase Ces Valeza Aguilar's photos of Catanduanes. Ces is my first and only wedding Goddaughter. She has a knack at taking pictures, which deserves recognition. The picture above is of Alcantara Resort located in Marilima, Virac, Catanduanes. I stayed in this resort the first time I took my whole family in Catanduanes. It was a beautiful and quiet place. On a clear day, we were able to see the magnificent "Mayon Volcano."

This is the famous Puraran Beach, internationally known for surfing. Awesome place!

The Marilima Beach, Marilima, Virac taken at sunset.

These last photos were taken by Dave T. The photo above is of Viga bay located in the northern part of Catanduanes. As small as Catanduanes is, it is ironic that I haven't circled the whole island and I may do just that on our forthcoming trip, hopefully. And it is coming soon...yeheey!

Beatiful Tokyo Falls located in Pandan, Catanduanes. This is another awesome place I have yet to see. So many beautiful places to visit, so little time.

School Supply Drive Is On.

2007-03-01T17:35:00.000-08:00

My daughter A and I went walking today along the lake and our conversation brought the idea of blogging this next entry. I asked her if she was going to spearhead the school supply drive for the poor Filipino children in the province this year and without hesitation, she said, "Yes!" That is just what I wanted to hear. This marks the fourth year of the drive. You probably all aware that Catanduanes, my province, bore the brunt of the super typhoon Reming, leaving many people homeless. This year's supply drive would really mean a whole lot to these poor children.

This idea was conceived when my daughter S visited the Philippines during her junior year in high school. She saw how poor the children were so when she got back in the USA, she knew she had to do something. She wasted no time and spearheaded a school supply drive along with the Key Club members both in school and in the community.

One third of our 3-car garage, my husband's jewelry room, was filled with school supplies which include backpacks, pencils, children books, rulers, binders, pencil case, erasers, scissors, pad paper, bond paper, etc.

I usually allocated the whole Sunday, my day off, for packing 4 to 5 extra large boxes with the help of my daughters and husband, including our pet, Mango. That is Mango with daughter S in the first picture entertaining us with his antics in between packing.

It took about one and a half month for these boxes to arrive in the province. My job was to make sure that they were distributed to the rightful recipients.

A Different Approach to Cooking

2007-02-27T18:17:00.000-08:00

Here's how the packet of Vege Fresh Fish looks like (for dangkin) The picture on the left is showing only half of the diameter of the packet.

Does this dish look appetizing to you? Do they look like fish steaks? Well, this is actually a vegetarian dish made out of soy. Believe me, you will love it. Even the picky eater like my daughter ate it with gusto. My husband thought it was because of the sauce that I whipped together to spread over the dish. Nah, the veggie fish steak itself was good.

You know where I got it? From the oriental store in Phoenix, called Lee Lee. It costs a little over $6.00 but it makes a meal for the whole family. One slice was enough to fill me up plus a veggie side dish, of course. It is a good alternative for meatless dinner and it is healthy.

It was so simple to cook. I pan fried each side until light golden brown. Then I chopped some red and bell pepper, some mushrooms, onions, slices of ginger and threw it all in the pan and cooked it until transluscent. I added a tablespoon of blackbean garlic sauce for flavor. Let it simmer for 2 to 3 minutes. Then I spread it over the dish. Finally, I opened a package of brown gravy and boiled it up as per instructions. I then poured it over the whole dish. There you go, a delectable meatless dinner.

My Orchard

2007-02-25T20:17:00.000-08:00

Just to show my friend, Dine, how fig trees look like. I haven't had a chance to take pictures of our fig trees when they were loaded with fruits. The above picture (that I lifted from a site somewhere (http://www.fotosearch.com/photos-images/fig-tree.html)resembles my figs during summer. By the way, the fig leaf is mentioned in the Bible (Genesis 3:7) when Adam and Eve covered their private parts with fig leaves.

Persimmon tree, one of my favorite fruits.

We had a summer supply of fruits last year and it lasted through the fall. A lot of the fruits were wasted on the ground for the javelinas to feast on. I was able to bake a couple of apple pies and hmmm, nothing could beat fresh picked apples. They were full of juices and just scrumptious. Thanks to my dear husband for planting the trees. We have also several fig trees, plums, and another variety of pear that are not included in the pictures I posted.

These apples make good pies. I just forgot the name.

Granny Smith apples, great for apple pies

Bartlett pears, sweet and juicy.

Fuji apples, my favorite apples.

Asian pears, huge, delicious, and juicy. One pear fills me up. Notice there are bruises on the fruits? It got hit with hailstorm in late spring.

Our Memorable Cruising Days

2007-02-23T19:13:00.000-08:00

My family used to enjoy spring vacation aboard a cruise ship. At first, I was apprehensive about the idea because I felt that it was not family friendly. I was wrong, of course. It was actually one of the best places to take the family. My husband would take advantage of cruise special discounts and would bring the kids along free so we ended up paying for two people only: my husband and I. What a deal!

No doubt, kids loved it! I loved it! Dad loved it! We got to enjoy feeling like a queen, king, and princess for a week. No dishes to do, no bed to make, no cleaning to do. Food was awesome! Lobsters, sword fish, tenderloin, filet mignon, sushi, pizza 24 hours, fresh tropical fruits, cakes, chocolates, etc. And the fun part was I got to dress up two nights a week. It felt good to be glamorous occasionally, and to be serenaded by good-looking crew.

After I indulged myself, I usually looked forward to the state-of-the-art fitness center. I stayed there for about 2 hours to burn the calories and to get ready for another big meal in the evening. I pushed aside dieting for a week. We followed the cruise ship motto, "Eat, live, and love!" Cruise activities were endless: aerobics, yoga, lounges, enjoy a day excursion in a private island, snorkeling, scuba diving, or shopping the entire day.

The kids enjoyed the cruise ship activities designed mainly for the children while dad and I got to savor private moments. Kids liked the generous pampering and the attention that they received from the waiters who were mostly Filipinos. Whatever the kids asked, the waiter granted. One time, the waiter asked one of my daughters what she wanted for dessert. My daughter said, "Nothing." "Okay, I will be right back" the waiter replied. A few minutes later, he came back with a plate that had the word "nothing" written on it using chocolate syrup. Corny eh?

All Region Choir...Worth Watching!

2007-02-20T20:27:00.000-08:00

I went through a lot of effort just to watch my daughter sing at the All Region Choir. Earlier this week, I already decided that I wasn't planning on watching her this year because the place where the choir was going to be held was too far of a drive. It was in Snowflake, a place I have never been before. My daughter headed to Snowflake on Sunday night and stayed two nights and two days over to get ready for the event. She called me from Snowflake on Monday morning and begged me to come and watch her because she and 2 other girls were chosen to sing trio. I told her that I was going to try my best to get off early but I couldn't promise. You see, today is the day after the holiday and we were swamped with work. Getting off early was not an easy thing to do. Nevertheless, I tried my best with all my might. I skipped my morning and afternoon breaks, lunch break, and I rushed through. I thought if I got done by 3:30 PM, I should be able to make it there by 6:00 PM (start of the program). I was flying! I only had a couple of bananas and a glass of odwalla green juice for energy. Fortunately, I was on my way home at 3:45 PM to change into regular clothes and to freshen up a bit. I told my husband that we were leaving in 10 minutes.

The drive to Snowflake wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. We crossed over snow-covered mountains, and then drove along an open rangeland for 1 1/2 hours. We saw a different countryside. The trees are shorter and bushier, probably because they don't get as much rain as we do here in P.

We arrived just in time. We noticed a long queue leading to the auditorium. We thought we were going to grab something to eat first once we found the place but it seemed the most logical thing to do was to skip our dinner The show was about to start.

The choir show lasted an hour. I thought it was time for us to head home because I was starving. Though they encouraged us to sit throughout the show but the stomach growling and the long drive home were good reasons enough to sneak out. And so we did.

The drive back was nice and relaxing. The sky was sprinkled with starlight, and the Milky Way stretched from horizon to horizon. The moon provided us light on the long dark road. My husband kept reminding me to keep close watch of elks so we don't hit them. I didn't see any.
Despite the fact that they were only given two days to sing as a group, nevertheless, the performance was superb. In this picture, she was one of the frontliners singing and dancing while the rest of the choir were in the back.
This picture was taken before the rendition of the next song. She knew daddy and I were taking pictures, so she flashed us a quick grin.

Mango, Our Lovebird Pet

2007-02-18T07:38:00.000-08:00

Take a look at this fruit for a moment. Doesn't it resemble with the bird below?
Meet our one and only pet, Mango. He was named after the fruit, of course. Don't the colors look exactly like the fruit, mango? Mango has been in our family since the kids were little, about 10 years ago. Our after-school-babysitter owned him and suddenly, she announced to our kids that she was selling Mango for $75. It didn't take a lot of convincing, the kids told our babysitter, "consider it sold." The kids paid for it out of their own money, if I recall it correctly. Dad said, "hey if you can take care of him, fine with me." My husband doesn't like pets and I am not fond of them either. I am too busy. The kids have been doing a good job taking care of him, I must say. When daughter S is home, she takes Mango to her room and spends time with him. She makes him do little tricks like letting Mango lie on his back on the palm of her hand and Mango gets mesmerized by it. She is the only one who can make him do it. He is so attached to her.
Mango sleeps in daughter A's room every single night. She takes care of the food and water and the cleaning of the cage ocassionally. Once his cage is covered with a blanket, it is his cue to go to sleep. He sleeps through until 5:30 AM in the morning. He let's us know when he wants out of the cage because he keeps rattling the cage door or he makes clucking noise. He will not stop until he gets our attention and it can be annoying. My husband who doesn't have tolerance to noise is the first one to come to his rescue. He lets him out and wanders around the house.
Lately, he found a new place that he likes to hang out...perching on top of my monitor. I don't know why but he seems to enjoy it here even when I am not home. I wonder if he feels that eventually my daughter will be going to college, thus, he senses the need to start bonding with my husband and I this early on. It is perfectly fine with me. However, he gets carried away when I turn on my speakers. The other day, I was audio chatting with friends in the Philippines, and I had trouble understanding what my friends were saying. Mango chimed in with the noise. The louder the speakers, the louder he gets, too. Therefore, I had no choice but to turn the speakers off and resort to typing my message on YM instead. He is full of antics! Lately, he seemed to find enjoyment pooping on the screen of my monitor. I think it was because I reacted the moment he did it and he thought it was fun. So, I knew then that I needed to send him a message. Now, every time he turns around and acts as if he is about to drop something, I would sternly say "NO Mango, NO!" Good news, my monitor has been nice and free of any droppings lately.

My L Turned 18

2007-02-16T18:41:00.000-08:00

My daughter A turned 18 on Valentine's Day. I took a day off so I could spend some time with her. While she was at school, I went shopping for balloons, cake, and the ingredients for chicken wraps. I planned to fix her lunch because she had a dinner appointment with her classmates at Denny's.

L doesn't care much for filipino food except eggrolls. I didn't want to spend the whole morning preparing eggrolls so I opted to make her favorite food---Mexican food.
These are soft tortilla chicken wraps. I cut the chicken in small cubes, seasoned it with mild chili powder, some paprika, salt, pepper, and flour (for thickening). I used masa flour for the recipe above. While chicken was cooking, I added some brown rice and cooked it for about 10 minutes. For the side dish, I made a avocado salsa. If you scroll down below, you will find the recipe for Avocado Salsa.

In the hot pan, I heated up two soft tortillas. I then placed the warm tortillas on the plate, scooped about 3 tablespoon of cooked rice chicken filling. I added a tablespoon of salsa, tablespoon of sour cream, and some chopped up cilantro. Delicious, I must say.

A Fun Day in Sariaya, Quezon Province.

2007-02-14T14:43:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving for a bountiful harvest in Sariaya, Quezon Province. May 15 is the feast of San Isidro, Labrador, patron saint of farmers in Sariaya. Several towns in Quezon celebrate the day as Thanksgiving for the year's bountiful harvest. In Sariaya, Quezon, the celebration is called "Agawan Festival" (Grabbing Festival). The festival is not only a day of Thanksgiving but also a way of sharing one's bounty.
Those chandeliers you see are made out of eggplants, carrots, and rice talks strung together. Pretty clever, eh?
You see the bamboo trees (known locally as bagakays)? They are adorned with fruits and junk foods, and the whole thing are lowered down after the procession for people to grab on for fun.
Interesting colorful decorations made out of native fans and hats.

You see those girls at the window? They are friends of mine who were lucky enough to experience the unique, enriching, interesting, and visually festive way of celebrating Thanksgiving in the Philippines.

Happy Valentine's Day to you All

2007-02-13T16:17:00.000-08:00

This morning before I went to work, I reminded my husband that tomorrow is Valentine's Day. "Oohh, okay," he said. As always, I was running late. I quickly grabbed my purse, took a couple of bottled water, some fruits for lunch, and hopped in the car. I was driving a little over the speed limit. I made it to work just in the nick of time. I am always the last one to arrive. It has become my signature being a late comer, and my postmaster has accepted it.

As I was doing my morning routine, I thought about the old woman in my route. Yesterday, she approached me and asked me if I had a card for her. I told her to wait a few minutes until I was done sorting the mail. I didn't have anything for her. So, I went to where she was seated and told her that she didn't recieve any mail today. Out of curiosity, I asked her if she was expecting a letter from someone. "Yes, a Valentine card from my grandson" the old woman replied. I said, "it might arrive tomorrow or next day." Of course, nothing came for her today.

This particular woman lives in the retirement center. Letter from a loved one like her grandson is what she looks forward to everyday, but the sad thing is, she seldom gets letter. What ever happened to her son and daughter? Are they too busy with their lives? Have they forgotten her completely? Why is the grandson the only one who cares to send her a card on special day? It surely not easy getting old in this country. When they are no longer able to care for themselves, without a choice, they are sent to a facility and leave their house, pets, family, and garden behind...the things that mean so much to them. This way, they will not be nuisance to their sons and daughter. Such a sad life!

Today, I bought three roses with her in mind. If I see her today, I plan to hand her a rose to hopefully cheer her up. I didn't cost me much.

The red roses, by the way, was a surprise gift for me from my hubby. The reminder I gave him this morning surely paid off. So ladies, it doesn't hurt to cue your husband once in a while. They need it.

Custom-Made is, by far, The Best

2007-02-11T10:42:00.000-08:00

About 5 years ago, we built our dream house..the first house we've ever built. We wanted a house that was just the right size for us. Our old house was rather big, with a pool and huge back lawns that required a lot of maintenance. Every time, we went out of town, it was absolutely necessary that we locked all the gates to prevent people from using the pool. Per Arizona law, it is my responsibility if anything happens to any one of them so I had to take a necessary safeguard.

So, when we finally decided to build our house, we made sure we eliminated the pool for that reason. Next, I wanted my house simpler and had ample storage. We also liked the idea of open floor plan where my living room, dinning room, and kitchen room were all in one room. We liked the living room to be bright and cheery and to face the view of the golf course. To do that, we put all three bedrooms over at one side of the house so we could take advantage of the view from our living room. We had to have a three-car garage since my husband longed for one. Sometimes, we need to make compromises to get the important ones. We installed many large windows in the living room. We also liked the idea of recess lighting in our kitchen so we had about 12 bulbs put in. The ample lighting and the spaciousness of the kitchen make the daily cooking activity worthwhile and fun. From the kitchen, we get to watch hummingbirds feeding in our backporch and view of our vegetable garden. Such a sight to watch!

I got the idea of the chandelier design when I was looking for our chandelier in Phoenix. I saw one similar to that only only smaller but was not available for sale until three months later. I couldn't wait that long. So, I went to our local metalsmith and showed him our design and specifications. It wasn't easy to make. It took him a month or so to finish it. I paid $800 for it. I didn't realize it was a bargain until one day when I had a visitor in our house from California who sold metal art. He took notice of my chandelier. He said, if he was to make it, he would sell it for $2,600 to $3,000. Wow! I got the chandelier for a bargain. It looks beautiful at night when lit. In fact, it is the main attraction of the living room. In the future, should I decide to move again, for some reason, I will make sure I take that chandelier with me.

Arizona Monsoon

2007-02-10T09:21:00.000-08:00

Since I don't have photos of Arizona monsoon in Payson, I lifted this picture from Yahoo!Photos of himanshur-tyagis photo.

I conceived the poem below while delivering mail on a rainy summer morning.

The much Anticipated Rain

It was a gloomy morning
way cooler than usual,
comfortable,
breezy
nice for a change

Then,
came a lightning
followed by a big roar
it went on for a while
while I hurried
to get my job done.

Until at last
it slipped into rain
gentle at first
light as a mist.

Gradually a little heavier
and heavier
pouring down
lots of it
soothing the parched lips
of the barren land.

It went on
until I could work no more
all vehicles doors shut
and watched in awe
the much anticipated rain.

It kept pouring,
lightning,
thunder reverberating in my ears
scary
its robustious noice
had left me
idled
and silenced.

Trees seemed happy,
contented
grounds soaking deep
water gushing,
gutters racing
creeks busy once again
filling up
our reservoirs.

I couldn't wait no more
to work, I must resume
the rain had let up a bit,
grabbed my raincoat,
torn and old,
good enough
to protect the mail,
your mail
from getting all drenched.

My Comfort Food

2007-02-09T11:19:00.000-08:00

I don't have that much of a free time today to write a longer post so I will be as brief as possible. My friend is meeting me in half an hour for a walk in the mountains. Of course, I will take my camera along in case I find interesting scenes that strike my fancy.

The pictures above are the kind of food that I crave for and look forward eating when I get a day off like today. I spent a few hours cooking these dishes this morning. I love fish. I can eat fish practically everyday and never get tired of it. I usually cook it in sour broth with plenty of veggies. This time, I tried the different approach...steaming inspired by Chateau. Boy, it is delicious. Steamed fresh pompano is awesome. You should try it.

First, I washed the fish and patted it dry. Then I sliced some ginger and spread it on top of the fish. I added about a tablespoon of soy sauce and steamed it for half an hour or until it is done. Of course, I checked the fish every now and then to make sure I didn't overcook the fish. When the steaming was over, I shredded some green onions and placed it on top of the fish. I then heated up some olive oil to a sizzle and poured it on the fish. You know when the oil is hot enough because it makes a hissing sound when poured on the steamed fish. Then I added another tablespoon of soy sauce.

Before I eat my meal, I usually eat fresh fruits. Many of you may wonder. Simply because it helps me avoid overeating since I am usually half way full after eating the whole mango or banana. Also, I discover that when I eat my meal in this particular order, I feel much better. I don't feel gassy and stuffed.

I also cooked togi today(stir-fry mong sprouts, tofu, and slices of pork). For some reason, I can't seem to eat a meal without vegetables. I can get by eating veggies and rice only even without fish and meat but not the other way around. I have to have those greens on my plate, whether it is salad or steamed veggies.

At work, I try to eat as little as possible because I tend to get sleepy when I eat huge meal. My kind of job requires me to be alert on the road at all times. Besides, it is difficult to work when stomach is full. Therefore, I usually go for veggie tuna salad or avocado sandwich, which is not only light but also healthy. Notice the salad is placed on top of a tray of letters. I took during my lunch break in my vehicle. You see, I do carry my camera to work but not often as it can be a nuisance.

Ooops, I have five minutes to drive to our meeting place.

My husband's a Fashion Critique

2007-02-07T20:44:00.000-08:00

This is me without the head. I kindly asked my hubby to take a shot of me so I can blog about my recent shopping spree. I purposely left out the head as my face didn't look decent enough for posting.

Anyway, last weekend, I went shopping for my clothes to wear in the Philippines anytime soon. My wardrobes are getting outdated and, therefore, need a little makeover. I usually take shorts, tank tops, camisoles, cotton skirts, and one formal outfit in case I get invited to a wedding, baptism, or go out on a formal dinner. The shorts, tank tops, I can re-wear but definitely not the dresses, sandals, and shoes.

I like this particular dress because it looks comfortable, simple, and the price was reasonable. One problem though, my husband thinks that the necklace doesn't complement the dress well. He said the necklace camouflages the dress, which makes it hard to notice. Huh? How well does he know about fashion? Was he right?I would have been perfectly happy with my choice had my husband not said those words. Now, I am contemplating on exchanging it to maybe yellow necklace with just a few touch of green. That means another long trip to the valley. What do you think?

At The Edge

2007-02-03T16:17:00.000-08:00

Hello friends,

I thought I would share with you the very first recording of my daughter, Stephanie.
She expects to release few more songs this summer when she has all the time to concentrate on music. Mom and dad always remind her that academics come first.

At The Edge, music and words by Stephanie Hilliard. Please click "Tepsie" on the top of my "Link list" to listen. Music plays automatically after a few seconds.

She sang "At The Edge" at a fundraising concert held in our local cafe along with 8 of her original songs for the benefit of the typhoon Reming victims in my village. For a small town with a population of roughly 14,000, we had a good turn out. The house was packed! She did excellently, people said.

Donations for Education

2007-02-01T19:06:00.000-08:00

I might as well get blogging about my family over before I move on to a more interesting and non-family related topics. I know most or some of you will probably get tired of reading posting about my two precious daughters but I will go ahead anyway. After all, this is a free country.

The article below was written by my daughter S 3 years ago during her junior year in high school. She was supposed to be posing with the Marilima kids from Virac, Catanduanes in the photo but for some reason, her second trip to the Philippines didn't happen as planned despite of the preparations she had done. I took her place instead, though I felt the disppointment from each of the children. They were very much looking forward to meeting my daughter for the first time. They made all kinds of preparations for her coming. They brought all kinds of goodies, delicious native food, native gifts, and even showcased the beautiful artworks that they created from the art supplies that they received. Only they didn't get to present it to her personally.

Additionally, from the article you will be able to learn and depict my humble beginnings. Please read on...

A project that holds much meaning to me is the one that I created called "Donations for Education." The inspiration came when I visited the Philippines last summer and saw the elementary school in my mother's village. The children were very poor and the school was very simple and stark. The school's walls were bare, the chairs were broken, and the children barely had any pencils or pens to write with. Also, they had few art supplies and books to read. When I walked back to my mother's old house, I noticed that my cousin was studying for her final exam. She had managed to crowd all of her notes onto a single sheet of paper. When I asked my mother why she did not use more than one piece of paper, she informed me that paper was hard to come by, and it was important that my cousin saved every single piece.

I found this surprising since I remembered that I had reams of paper lying around my house. I also had many old boxes of crayons and markers that could be better utilized by the Filipino children. I had several old backpacks, binders, and folders that I did not need anymore. I realized that if every person in my community could donate a few extra school supplies that were available in their homes, even the simplest items such as a few sheets of paper, it would be enough to support several elementary school classes in the Philippines. I decided that the easiest way to plan out this endeavor would be to create a school supply drive in which community members could easily donate any items relative to education.

To accomplish this goal, I asked my Key Club for their help. I proposed my idea during a club meeting, asking if they could help with the project advertisement, and other related tasks. I was the head chaiperson and called several committee meeting throughout the duration of the project to organize and plan the school supply drive. Together, we decided to hold both a community-wide and a school-wide drive.

Through the project "Donations for Education", more than thirty four hundred school supplies were collected. These included pens, pencils, markers, crayons, colored pencils, backpacks, children books, paper, colored construction paper, scissors, glue, etc. Large shipping boxes were filled to the brim with the supplies (in fact, we were not able to fit all the supplies into the three boxes...which will be carried over into the next year's drive.) The Filipino children received many essential school supplies that would help them with their schooling. Additionally, the students now had backpacks to help them carry their belongings during their long walking trips to and from the school. The teachers were very enthusiastic receiving art supplies, teacher's manual to several textbooks, and children books in english.

Not only did the project affect the lives of many children, it also taught me to believe in myself. Before, I did not expect a project of this much planning and organization to follow through, but I discovered that I do have strength within myself. I learned to set my mind on my goal and understand that obstacles will certainly get in the way, but I just have to overcome them with confidence. The closer friendship that I gained with the rest of the Key Club members were invaluable. Additionally, I gained a connection with my Filipino heritage. Even though the Philippines is halfway around the world, it felt like the distance didn't matter since I was able to help them no matter how many miles away they were. When I received thank you letters and pictures from the students, I was truly amazed to see them holding up school supplies in the pictures that had been previously held by my own hands. I never imagined that I would be receiving letters with personal signatures from the students and creating new friendships. I am truly thankful for this project, not only for the result that it has accomplished, but also for the joy and gratitude that it has instilled within me.

My daughter A has been spearheading the drive for the last two years now.

My L

2007-01-30T19:23:00.000-08:00

"Mom and dad, I made it! I made it to the all region choir!" "I was ranked 9th!" "Wow, congratulations!" I replied. She then handed me a packet which contains instructions, music, and a letter.

It says in the letter that the Arizona All-State system is recognized as one of the finest in the country. Lexie is happy! She has every reason to feel that way and I am proud of her. Though along with the prestige and honor, comes the responsibility of learning brand new music, which she has to learn ahead of time before the festival. This is to ensure a high quality choral experience, focusing on artistic communication, and not have to think or worry of just singing the notes and words correctly.

To get into all Region Choir, each student is required to sing solo in front of the judges. They are judged according to pitch, musical detail, vocal technique, vocal tone and color, diction, and other factors such as stage presence, style, communication, etc. She scored 54 out 60. Not bad, eh? Moreover, each student is required to do sight-reading, which is the toughest part of the whole audition unless the students have prior piano knowledge. Fortunately, she had had piano lessons in the past so it gave her a slight edge in the competition.

February 19-20 is All Region Choir performance. There are three things that they need to bring: sharpened pencil, a bottle of water, and a "focused" self. And an attire suitable for worship.

Charred Pot Stickers

2007-01-28T21:08:00.000-08:00

Ohmigosh! I am manifesting some signs of Alzheimer or something. Or could it be pre-senior moment? Since I turned the magic 40, I seem to be forgetting many things. This Sunday morning, I planned on fixing a brunch for my family and the first thing that came to mind was pot stickers. My family loves pot stickers with a store-bought dipping sauce. I took the frozen pot stickers out of the freezer and lined them up side by side on the pan. I added a fourth of a cup of water and let it boil for a while on low heat so it would thaw completely. Well, since I am fond of multi-tasking, I went into my bedroom and puttered around for a while. My bedroom is 20 paces to the kitchen. Then I got my hands on the computer, which was a mistake because it made me totally forgot what I was cooking in the kitchen. Peks man! I thought my daughter A was fixing herself some brunch. I yelled, "A, are you cooking something?" She didn't answer. I continued to fiddle around with the computer, and at the same time, the severity of the burning smell was increasing by the minute. I yelled at my daughter again, "A, something is burning, go check the stove!" I heard no answer.

It finally dawned to me that I was cooking something. I rushed as fast as my legs could carry me to the kitchen. There I saw charred pot stickers, unfit for human consumption! I felt bad! I felt horrible! Good thing my husband and daughter didn't give me a hard time and and looked for something to munch on instead in the pantry while I was getting ready to cook another dish. This time, I stayed by the kitchen the whole time.

My question is am I the only one experiencing this problem? Or was the computer to blame?

Mountain Community

2007-01-28T08:24:00.000-08:00

The dichotomy between fire and snow. Yes, the prescribed burn continous in our area. The other day, smoke covered our whole neighborhood prompting others to leave the area for a day until the smoke subsided. It is like a flu shot, we need to take a small portion of the smoke now to avoid getting full blown wild fire in the summer.

The first picture shows our community. My husband took it while I was at work. As you can see, we are surrounded with national forest, away from hustle and bustle of the city, about 70 miles northeast of Phoenix. It is one of the few ozone-free places in the nation. It is one of the prettiest places in AZ. Everything is within 10 minute-drive from home; school, church, piano lesson, theater, shopping, etc. I used to walk from work during summer to get my exercise, which usually took me 35 minutes. I would ask my husband to drop me to work and I would walk home. It is a good way of getting my exercise out of the way being that I am a busy mom.

Temperature is around 12 to 15 degrees cooler than in Phoenix. We get nice blue sky most of the time. Our highest temperature that I can remember is 105 degrees F and it seldom goes right below zero for our coolest temperature. We have four seasons: winter, spring, autumn, and summer. My favorite seasons are spring and autumn. We have perfect temperature around this time of year and we don't use heater or air conditioning. People from Phoenix flock here during summer to avail of our cooler weather and camp out by the stream and in the mountains. There are plenty of hiking trails around mostly forest service roads for the national forest, which I enjoy doing.

Goodies for my T.

2007-01-25T17:54:00.000-08:00

I spent half of my lunch break today buying goodies for my daughter, S. I thought I will send her some sweets to nibble on while studying late at night. I didn't realize she has tough subjects this quarter at Stanford U. Her human biology lab takes 5 long hours. My stomach will definitely growl if I don't have in-between snacks that long of a stretch. I just learned that she doesn't carry snacks or even a bottle of water to the class. So mama insisted that she should.
These are the goodies I bought: rice crispies, kit-kat, lindt, and york chocolates, and beef jerky. I had to be careful in choosing which chocolates to buy because she is allergic to all kinds of nuts.

I have very kind customers (couple) in my route who frequently give me fresh home-made macademia cookies. N, the wife, walked to the mailbox today to hand me these cookies. They tasted scrumptious! I just had to control though that I didn't over indulge myself otherwise I will end up with wider hips. The most I eat was one and I then put them in the back of my van so I wouldl not be constantly sniffing its torturing aroma. People like them are the reason why I love my job.

I could send those cookies along for her roomates to feast on or I could take it to work to share with my co-workers.

Burn Baby Burn!

2007-01-24T13:13:00.000-08:00

What a quick turn of events in our area! One day it was snowing, the next day, it is burning up! Strange! I saw lots and lots of smoke! I yelled at my husband, "S, come on, hurry, there is fire in nearby mountains!" He came running to the living room and was just as alarmed as I was. I said, "Get the camera, and let's drive to the scene." I was still in my pajama outfit being that today is my dayoff and I like to lounge around in my comfy PJ. "Change into jeans, quickly", my husband dictated. I quickly combed my hair, and I couldn't care less how my face looked. "No one will be able to see me, I will just stay in the car", I whispered. We got on the car, and drove off. When I got closer to the scene, I saw several people in yellow outfit. Who could they be?

As we got closer, the fire seemed to be spreading...
Then I saw people moving...
They are the firefighters...what are they doing?

Ahhh...it finally dawned to us that the fire was a prescribed burn. They were burning the brushes out so that when the fire season comes, the neighboring houses will be safe from possible wildfire caused by lightning. Summer time is our monsoon season and is usually accompanied by scary lightning and thunder. Lightning has caused many wildfires in AZ and I am thankful that our community is doing pre-emptive measures in minimizing such occurences. We live at the foot of the mountains in which wildfire can happen anytime caused by lightning strike. While my brothers dread for super typhoon in Catanduanes, we, here, are fearful of fire. Imagine your newly-built house being engulfed by a ball of fire? One time, I arrived home full of gray ashes being out all day delivering mail, and not to mention the carbon dioxide I breathed in big doses. And fire can linger on for weeks. Older people who have respiratory problems need to be evacuated into a smoke free area or they could die.

Flashback..Mt Rainier Trip

2007-01-23T16:15:00.000-08:00

Crab fat, anyone? Caught it myself.
Breathtaking Mt. Rainier, WA., taken with a Sony Cybershot 3.2 mega pixels
Close up of Mt Rainier

Last summer, we went to Seattle for my husband's side family reunion. The reunion was held in Packwood, WA, which is in close proximity to the beautiful Mt. Rainier. We were excited visiting WA. again since we once lived there before coming to AZ. Before we headed to the reunion, we spent a whole week of fun and adventure in Seattle. We went crabbing and fishing in an island in WA., the highlight of our trip. We brought ring traps and baits for the crabs. Once we secured the bait in the trap, we submerged it in the water. That easy! The trap was fastened to a rope, which we then tied around a sturdy post. We made sure that we checked the trap every half an hour. The most exciting part of crabbing is the pulling of the trap especially if it is loaded. The trick is to reel it in as fast as possilbe so the crabs have a slim chance of escaping. Hurry! Hurry! my friend would scream. We probably caught 10 crabs (combination of dungeness and rock crabs). As soon as we got home, we wasted no time boiling all 10 for 15 to 20 minutes. Then came the next fun part...feasting. I chose the biggest one and cracked the shell open. Juices squirted out! I was so excited to see the white-yellow fat inside the back of the shell. See picture above. It tasted so heavenly. What a delicacy!

Then we headed to Packwood for the family reunion. On our way over, we noticed that the cherries and blueberries were in abundance. We pulled in to the blueberry farm. I wasted no time helping myself to fresh, sweet, mouth-watering, little round fruits off the display. I probably had my fill from nibbling here and there. The owner didn't seem to mind..hehe. Nothing can really beat fresh fruits...they were delightful. We bought one flat and gorged on it everyday.

When the reunion was over, we drove to Mt. Rainier. We took a hike and went as near as possible to the top. It was breathtaking! There were many interesting things to see along the way. Took those 2 pictures above.

Niceheart Tagged Moi

2007-01-22T17:49:00.000-08:00

Five things that happened to me because of blogging:

I was able to convince my husband to buy me an expensive camera so I can take good pictures. Cruise inspired me to try photography. He definitely has a knack for it. However, I found out that I don't really need an expensive camera to take good photos. Less expensive cameras do just as good if not better. Now, I am tempted to get that S2IS.
Don't leave home without my camera. When my husband, daughter A, and I went shopping yesterday, the whole surroundings were draped with white snow, the sky was blue with nice patches of clouds...perfect for photography! I immediately remembered my camera. Uh oh! I left it home so I begged my husband to make a quick turn around but, of course, he didn't listen. :( I managed to take few pictures when we got back though the clouds didn't stay where they were. See my post: Snowstorm in Payson.
Sleep deprivation. The first thing I do when I get home from work is turn on my computer. While the computer is booting, I quickly go to the bathroom (just to show you that I do practice multitasking). Sometimes, I don't start my aerobics until 10:30 PM and finish at 11:30 PM. Then I blog hop for another 15 minutes, then take my shower, and before I know it, it is 12:30 AM. My gosh, few more hours and I have to go to work.
Household chores are usually half done. "These dishes can wait, or there is only one load of laundry left, I will do it tomorrow or the next day" I often murmur to myself. I do finish it by the end of the week when I am about to start another set of chores. One of my new year's resolutions is to try to spend less time on computer and more on household matters, but I don't see it happening just yet.
Last but not the least, I get to meet people from all over the world. I get to snoop into peoples' private lives, how they celebrate birthdays, Christmas holidays, etc. I also learn some valuable information that I can benefit from.

Snowstorm in Payson

2007-01-21T15:42:00.000-08:00

View from our living room

View from the backyard
Another view from the backyard

We just had our first major snowstorm in Arizona this year--dropping about 8 inches of snow. It looks beautiful outside. I am glad today is Sunday so I was able to sleep in and didn't have to deal driving on the treacherous road. However, tomorrow, whether I like it or not, and whether rain, sleet, or snow, I have no choice but to go to work. The mail delivery must go on. I just have to make sure I have chain on my rear wheels. Last Saturday, which was the second day of the snowstorm, I opted not to use cable. I was doing well until I reached towards the tail end of my route. This woman has a special delivery next to her house because she is physically unfit to walk to the mail box. For a while, I thought I would skip her for fear of being stuck on her loose-gravel-driveway. After much thought, I bravely swerved into her driveway, and suddenly, I started going sideways. Then, my rear wheels were spinning "Oh uh!", I mumbled. I was having fun at first, and when I realized I was getting close to the ditch, I thought I better get serious and do something. I gave a little tap on the accelerator and after several attempts, I successfully managed to get out of snow. Whoah! close call! I made a U turn instead of attempting to go forward because the path ahead is quite narrow, which could pose more problems. Once I made it on the road, I looked back and saw the huge mess I created. I learned a lesson to trust my instinct.

Calorie Computation Based on Weight

2007-01-21T09:24:00.000-08:00

I am seriously thinking of losing the 5 pounds I have gained over the year. The sexy photo that you saw of me was taken the Christmas of 2005 and I don't look quite like that anymore. I sustained a knee injury probably due to excessive use of treadmill. So, I avoided running for a while and have concentrated on low impact aerobics and weight lifting.

Yesterday at work, our kind cleaning lady brought two boxes of freshly baked, mouth-watering doughnuts and I knew one of it had my name written on it, but I was able to resist the temptation. I patted myself on the back for a job well done! If only those people would quit bringing those yummy goodies...

Since my trip to the Philippines is just around the corner, I am really putting forth extensive effort in losing these 5 stubborn pounds so I would look decent in bikini. In my experience, cutting down on food alone will not help me lose weight. I have to exercise regularly at least 4 times a week and maintain a healthy diet.

Here is how I calculate the amount of calories that I need. At 5'3", I weigh 110 pounds. For an active person like me who exercises 4 times a week or more, I multiply my weight by 16; 110 x 16=1760. That is how many calories I can take to maintain my current weight. But I want to shed 5 pounds so I then multiply 1760 by 0.2 which yields 352. That is how many calories I have to cut down in order to lose weight at most 1 pound a week. So, 1760 minues 352 is equal to 1408, number of calories I have to stick to get back to my ideal weight.

For a person who doesn't exercise at all, multiply the weight by 13. Let's say, she weighs 120 times 13 equals 1560. That is how many she can take to maintain her present weight. Now, if she wants to lose weight, multiply 1560 by 0.2, which is equal to 312. That is the amount of calories she needs to cut back to lose weight without exercising.

And subsequently, for a person who exercises 3 times a week, multiply weight by 15 and so on and so forth.

Any questions?

Mango Pearl..Exposed

2007-01-18T20:27:00.000-08:00

I guess it is about time that I reveal the untold, off-the-record secrets of Mango Pearl. How I do I feel about it sexy mom? I am all for it, after all, at 40 something, what do I have to lose? Who do I have to impress? No one! Life is short, so vive la vida loca!!

Padded Butt secret: When I was in college, I was a midget! I weighed under 100 pounds. I had flat chest and flat butt...double whammy! I looked ugly in denims. Flat chest was not a problem as nice padded bra would take care of it but what about flat butt? One day, I saw Maricel Soriano on television and I told my sister-in-law, "Maricel is skinny, yet she looks pretty". "But she looks toned", my sis-in-law quickly responded. Hmmm, "how do I power my butt into shape" I asked myself. Suddenly, I thought of an idea. "My shorts!" "I will wear it under my pants and I will have a nice looking butt!" No one ever suspected I was wearing shorts under my pants. Little did I know that many many years later, I will be endowed with a J-lo-look-alike-butt. See it for yourself..hehe.
Amazing Secret: This particular one is more of an attribute. My husband thinks that not very many people can do it. My toes are my third hand. I can pick anything off the floor using my toes. My husband sometimes will ask me, "honey, can you hand me the calculator?" Just for the fun of it, I will use my toes to pick the calculator and toe it to him. He gets a kick out of it. He tried it many times and he couldn't quite do it. Can you? Try lifting a 10-pound dumbell?
Lethal Secret: I refuse to let my children outsmart me..sometimes. "Mommy, you don't know anything, mommy, I am smarter than you" lines I often hear from my youngest one. Yeah right! Let's see! Though it is not my intention (really) to sleuth on them, but there are times when I a forced to invade their private territory because the looks of it is beyond my tolerance. Invasion of their room can be entertaining and rewarding, and I usually end up staying longer as planned. I usually come across many great finds! Nice folded letters, goodies under the bed, etc. Of course, I will help myself to a bite of chocolates. Lucky, I am not fond of chocolates. Will I open the letters? I will leave it up to you.
Looking Teenager Secret: At 5'3", I weigh 110 pounds. I am probably lighter than my children..psst! Whenever I go shopping, I usually find myself in the teen section of the store because clothes there fit me better, accentuate my curve, and a little cheaper.
Embarrassing Secret: My motto is "Refuse to Look Old. As long as I can afford color treatment and hair cut every 8 weeks, I will not dare expose the true color of my real hair. A teacher of my daugher in high school refuses to get her hair colored because she thinks gray hair says I am mature, I demand respect. But the reality is when men see gray hair on women, they will think they look old and unattractive. So, should I give in to gray? Not Now! Maybe later.

Yummy Salsa

2007-01-16T08:05:00.000-08:00

"Mom, can you please make salsa", my daughter asked. She loves to eat salsa with tortilla chips. I don't always prepare it for her except when I have a long weekend. I happened to have one last week and so she and I went shopping yesterday and bought all the necessary ingredients. It is easy to make. All you need to do is cut up the ingredients into small pieces, add salt, lemon juice, orange juice (about 2 T), and a dash of tabasco (or more if you have a high hot-o-meter tolerance), and that is basically it. It is good to eat with tinapa, tuyo, and rice or with chips (mexie-style). It is a healthy dish, actually and so I don't mind making the extra effort fixing it for my children.

My ingredients for Salsa: tomatoes, onions (not shown), avocados, cilantro, lemons, tabasco (not shown), salt, and orange juice (not shown)
As always, I use veggie and fruit wash for washing vegetables and fruits to get rid of wax and pesticide residue.

Yummy salsa.

Puraran Beach House Up for Sale

2007-01-15T10:33:00.000-08:00

The breathtaking Puraran beach.

I have mentioned about my beach house in my previous entry and I am pushing it at the top of the page so people will know. Yes, it is up for sale. The house is located in the island of Catanduanes, in the town of Baras, in the barrio of Puraran. The house is just a short walk to the ocean shown above.

Puraran is a surfer's paradise. It has powerful waves that break into corals 100 to 200 meters from the beach. Surfers and tourists from all over the world come to this place to take advantage of the majestics waves that people rave about or just to relax and enjoy the beautiful scenery. You practically have possession of the beach all to yourself. It is a perfect place for photography. The beach is nestled by the mountains on the east side. Over on the right side of the beach is an awesome place that resembles the scenes from the "Sounds of Music." When I visited the place, for a moment, I thought I was in Austria...breathtaking view! Surprisingly, a white tall guy with a German accent appeared out of nowhere, not too far from the grass where we were seated. He actually owns a house in this area...lucky him! How did he ever find this place? I found out that he has been touring Catanduanes for some time now and he felt in love with the place.

Two resorts here offer basic accomodation for reasonable cost. For Ph300, you can have a room and two meals. The meal is mainly composed of rice, fresh fish, veggies, and a bottle of water.

This house is still going through finishing stage. When it is done, it is going to be up for sale for Ph4, 000,000, which includes furnitures and appliances. The house should be finished by March or earlier. Personal items are not included. So, if you are a retired surfer and would want to live frugally in a state of the art house, this is a perfect place for you. A place where you can get the most out of your retirement money and still able to live like king and queen. You get the catch-of-day right at your doorstep most morning from the local fishermen, and lobster, in season, at reasonable prices. If you are interested, email me at liwayway07@yahoo.com.
Beach house photo taken at 90% completion
Master bathroom
Stairwell is made out of handmade narra wood.
Close up of the kitchen with hubby (didn't give my hubby a chance to suck his tummy in)
Dining room from a different angle
Kitchen and dining room

Wild King Salmon from Alaska

2007-01-14T17:56:00.000-08:00

We had baked wild king salmon for dinner last night given by my friend, Elaine. She gave us three meals worth. Thank you dear friend! For two years in a row now, they have been going to Alaska for salmon fishing for a whopping cost of $5,000 per person plus tips of $200. Imagine that? She and her husband enjoy fishing immensely that is why they don't mind paying such a large price.

I usually use salt, pepper, cut-up basil, and lemon juice to flavor the salmon to preserve its delicate taste. However, last night I didn't have lemons. I didn't want to make a trip to the grocery store that late either. I asked myself, "what can I use instead of lemon?" I gazed at my pantry for a while. Suddenly, I saw a bottle of unopened Zesty Italian dressing, my saving grace. I immediately grabbed it and drizzled about 2 tablespoons on the whole salmon, plus the salt, pepper, and basil flakes. I added some slices of onions and tomatoes and tossed in three average-size potatoes good for three people...my husband, A, and me. I baked it at 375 degrees, 20 minutes long. I had to keep close watch of it as I didn't want to cook it one minute longer. You don't want to overcook salmon. After 20 minutes had elapsed, I took the tray out of the oven to see if the salmon was cooked. Nope, it wasn't quite done yet. I shoved it right back in the oven for no more than 3 minutes.

Boy, the salmon tasted so heavenly with baked potato, and fresh green salad on the side. It was cooked just perfect!

Show, And Not Tell

2007-01-07T09:25:00.000-08:00

I was reading on tips on blogging and one known blogger suggested that a writer must show and not tell to make writing interesting. Hmmm, this is something that doesn't happen overnight. What I can do to improve my writing is to just practice, practice, and practice. And when I am done with it, I will practice some more. Just like playing a guitar, you don't become an expert overnight.

Here is an interesting short story written by my daughter when she was a sophomore in high school:

I stared at the monstrous river that blocked my destination. The sun's rays beat down on my face as I squinted toward the other side. The rushing waters looked like it would sweep anything crossing its path down to oblivion. Tampico, the Shetland pony I was riding, neighed. Could I cross the river, and could Tampico make it through the rushing current? The river looked too brutal, so I decided it was not quite time to try just as yet. I turned around back towards my house.

Everyday in the summer, I would ride Tampico up and down the driveway of my house. Tampico was a white pony with a long, fluffy tail. He was very gentle, tame, and best of all, brave. And yet everyday, we would both face the same challenge of the surging river, daring us to cross its sparkling yet mysterious waters.

"Dinner" I heard my mom call out. I could feel my stomach churning and anticipating the delicious meals my mom always made. The river could wait another day...right now it was dinnertime.

The next day, the sun welcomed Tampico and me outside as I fed the pony some apples from my family's orchard. I could hear boats sailing through Lake Washington, which was just a mile away from my house. The dazzling surface of the lake blinded my eyes when the sun reflected off of it. I thought about the river. The weather looked a little bit gloomy and a few patches of clouds filled the sky, but the current was not as strong as it had been, so I thought it would be the best time to cross.

I mounted Tampico, and we slowly made our way out of the orchard towards the river's muddy edge. I glared at the river as if trying to read its mind...trying to find the exact moment when the river would be most vulnerable and easiest to cross. I did not mind the challenge, but I did not want little Tampico to drown. The stream looked serene and peaceful, rather than angry and full of revenge. I dug my heels into Tampico's side and nudged him to move forward. He looked up at me with longing eyes and asked if we could wait just one more day to cross, but I knew we had waited too long for this journey. It was time to cross the river. It would be the biggest challenge of our lives.

After seven years of staring at the furious river, which no kids in our neighborhood ever dared to cross, Tampico and I gracefully made our way across the stream. I breathed in a sigh of relief, and pride set in my mind as I held my head up high. I was the bravest kid in the neighborhood.

We were halfway across when, unexpectedly, the river started to take on a dark and gloomy shade. The water began to churn mysteriously, and haze settled around us. Fears built up inside me, and I could feel my heart beating more rapidly every second. We were no longer in the tranquil river we had first started to cross... it had switched personalities and turned into an enraged accumulation of fury. Splashing waves crashed against the riverbacks, and icy shards of rain began to fall.

"Neeeiiiggghhh!" Tampico cried out in fear. I could sense him struggling to keep his balance on the rocky bottom.

I gripped on to Tampico's neck with all my might. "Hold on Tampico! We can make it!" Just a little bit farther in the distance was the othe side of the river. If it would just calm down for a moment, we could make it.

But it was too late. Tampico lost his footing and we were both tossed around in the river. I couldn't see anything because the water clouded my eyes. I coughed and coughed trying to keep my head above the surface. I could hear Tampico panicking. The droplets of water boisteroulsy laughed at us as it splashed our faces and I could hear the rocks on the bottom giggling and tittering at us. They had all tricked us into crossing the deadly waters.

Suddenly, I felt a hand grab my wrist. I turned around only to see that it was my mom. "Stephanie, didn't I tell you not to play in the street?" she asked sternly.

"I wasn't playing in the street, mom, I was trying to cross the river!" I insisted, trying to grab Tampico. "Help Tampico! He's drowning!" I helplessly cried.

"You and your imagination, pick up that bicycle of yours...Tampico...whatever you call it, and go inside!"

I sighed and picked up Tampico. I knew I wouldn't stop trying to achieve my goal of crossing the river. Yes, the raging, taunting river may have only been 26th street, and Tampico may have only been a bike, but there's nothing wrong with a little imagination.

The Most Anticipated Arizona Rain

2007-01-05T20:15:00.000-08:00

Arizona Rain by S.

rocking back and forth
on the white wicker chair
each sting of the glassy pearls
pricking the sheltering porch rail
humorously magnified
by the motionless of the wind
restless
weariness,
soaking in the rain
ba-rum-pum-pum only
by the drumming of my fingers
tapping the white wicker chair
so only the rain,
the welcome pitter-patter of the rain
the ching-a-ling-ling of the wind chimes
and my drumming echo
beyond trenched coat clouds
a broken resonance
as the steel droplets cut through the wind
leafy plumes reach out,
streched, and trembling
from so many dry days
so many seasons glanced over
swishhhhhhh...
a last enamored wash of rain
until nothing
but slowly sleeping morsels of dust
leftover droplets disguised as glass
the thankful, satiated flora
and my discordant tapping
remain.

The Pleasant Valley Trip in Young, AZ.

2007-01-04T18:52:00.000-08:00

One afternoon, my husband, and my daughters A and S, suddenly, decided to go for a ride to Young, AZ. It is an hour and 15 minutes drive from where I live. I decided to stay home to finish my household chores, do some errands in town and mainly, to be left alone.

This is A posing with the sword that belonged to Geronimo when he surrendered. He was a
feared leader of the Apache Indian in the 1800. To the Apaches, Geronimo embodied the very essence of the Apache values, aggressiveness, courage amidst adversities. The Spaniards raided and killed Geronimo's young wife and child, thus, caused him to hate the whites and vowed to kill as many as he could.
My daughter, S, posing in front of the cabin where Frank used to live in 1946. Frank Chapman is the owner of this property. The house is no longer livable at this time. It has a musty odor not having been occupied for a long time. Frank now owns a modern house.

Frank teased the girls that he wouldn't mind having them in exchange for horses. He did not only say it once but several times. The girls didn't care for his sense of humor and were rather pissed off! My husband went along with joke and told the guy that he is not easy person to deal with and that he would want many many horses from the exchange. The moment they arrived home, A rushed inside and told me the story. I thought that was funny.
When the creek changed its path coming too close to the backdoor, they had to move the cabin to a new location. In 1946, Frank spent his childhood years in this cabin. Original cabin was built in 1878. Many years thereafter, rooms had been added but this particular cabin was the original one. If you see closely, you will see round bullet holes which were presumably from Indians' attacks. There are also some bigger holes to put the gun barrel through to defend themselves from attackers. It was sure a hard life those days. I wouldn't want to live in fear and in constant watch of my back in my own home.
This is the oldest tractor from the Pleasant Valley. It doesn't work anymore.
This saddle was used by Olga Young in about 1900 for 50 years. She was the postmaster of the Pleasant Valley, which was later named after her. So, that is how Young got its name.
Good shot of my husband holding the sword of Geronimo. Notice the two buttons of his shirt came undone? Hehehe...

Here are some qoutes from Geronimo, the great warrior.

I was warmed by the sun, rocked by the winds, and sheltered by the trees as other Indian babes
I was living peacefully when people began to speak bad of me.
Now I can sleep well, eat well and be glad. I can go anywhere with a good feeling.
The soldiers never explained to the government when the Indian was wronged, but reported the misdeeds of the Indians.
We took an oath not to do any wrong to each other or to scheme against each other.
I cannot think that we are useless or God would not have created us.
There is one God looking down on us all. We are all the children of one God. The sun, the darkness, the winds are all listening to what we have to say.
When a child, my mother taught me to knell and pray to Usen for strength, health, wisdom, and protection.
Sometimes we prayed in silence, sometimes each one played aloud, sometimes an aged person prayed for all of us...and to Usen.
I was born on the prairies where the wind blew free and there was nothing to break the light of the sun. I was born where there were no enclosures.

New Year's Resolution

2007-01-01T10:08:00.000-08:00

Today is January 1, 2007, and here is my New Year's Resolution

Exercise at most an hour a day, 4 days a week.
Eat sensibly.
Be happy.
Work at a comfortable and relaxed pace.
Getting to know more about God by studying Bible.
Spending less time on computer and more on the household matters.

I did pretty good controlling my appetite last Christmas. I don't remember eating desserts on Christmas day and New Year's dinner. My friend's delicious homemade apple pie last New Year's eve was hard to resist but for some reason, I totally forgot all about it and missed eating a piece. It was probably because I wasn't feeling good that day because of flu.

We had our Christmas dinner over at a friend's house. I bought three kinds of desserts: apple pie, pecan pie, and biko. Biko disappeared quickly. The apple pie and pecan pie were barely touched. I didn't take any leftover desserts home. It is one of my tricks to stop me from indulging. Now, am back to eating rice and bagoong for weeks...hehe

How was your Christmas and New Year's dinner?

My Mother

2006-12-31T09:25:00.000-08:00

I miss my mom. She passed away a little over three months ago, exactly three months after I visited her in Catanduanes. I thought she had few more years to live because she didn't show any signs or tinges that she was going to die. She was fiesty, active even though she was confined to her wheelchair, nossy, and at 88 years old, she was very alert. Surprisingly, her memory had remained sharp until her last days.

Ever since I went to college, I don't think I ever returned to the province for longer vacation to rebond with my mom. The most I stayed with her was few months during summer break which I often spent holding a summer job in Bato. Though in my younger years, my mom and I had spent many times together, from going to the swamp, planting corn, camote, planting rice, and others stuff. At such a young age, she taught me how to survive in this tough and cruel world in her own way. Honestly, whenever I go back home, I don't mind doing those odd jobs even if it would mean I have to get messy. One time, my friend O took me to the forest to dig some "garyang", a delicious native root which I believe only grows in the province. It was a lot of work digging the roots out of a muddy soil. After we were through, we were all covered with mud and my dinem pants had stains all over from the juice of the "garyang" leaves.

When I was in Puraran, my husband and I, suddenly, were left alone for a day with lots of chores to do, including laundry. Normally, we had company to help us around the house. I didn't want to wait another day so I rolled my sleeves up, squatted down and washed the clothes the old fashion way...with my bare hands. My caretaker saw me and unhesitantly offered his wife to do the washing for me and I nicely declined the offer. I said, "I can handle this myself, thank you," I washed tons of clothes including 2 sets of beddings. After I was through hanging the clothes, I was overly exhausted.

Going back to my mom, I wrote an eulogy for her which was read by my niece, Tintin, on my behalf because, sadly, I was not able to attend to her funeral...same scenario with my father 17 years ago. It was a hard decision but I had no other choice. I know my mom would understand my situation.

Here is the Eulogy:
We consider ourselves to be one of the luckiest families to be given the chance to spend quite a lenghty time with our mother. Those times were full of memories. There is nothing else we could have asked for. She lived a long life and that is quite an achievement.

Though, it is extremely hard to lose a mother who was so dear to our hearts, yet our good memories with her are more than enough to compensate for the sadness. I am sure that mother does not want us to weep for her, but for us to be strong and to get on with our lives.

She was an incredible woman. Surprisingly enough, I saw myself in her. When my husband and I recently visited her last May, she spent a couple of days with us in our Puraran hut together with our relatives. I wanted her to experience life in a modern house even if it was just for a short time. On one of our conversations, Glo, (her caretaker then) made random comments to mama, "may, kapandok mo daw si B, lalo na pag gaguro ka." I wasn't sure if those were the exact words but that was the essence of what she said. Mama, as always, gave a sly smile, huyom huyom kung baga. She certainly looked good while staying with us in Puraran.

On one of our lunch sessions in Puraran, I noticed my mom's appetite was unsually huge! So, being straightforward and funny as I can be, I could not contain myself and I said jokingly, "mama, daog mo daw ako sa kaonan, hamak pang rice iyan na nakaon mo!" She didn't say a word and continued to finish her meal.

Two days later, she went back to her own abode. My Puraran hut must not have been to her liking, as she couldn't manuever on her own. You see, even though she was physically disabled, she tried her best to be independent. Where she lived, she found a way to hop on her wheelchair from her bed so she could snoop around and see what was going on around the house. Now, I know where I got my nosiness.

She definitely loved all her children and grandchildren. She made sure that all her children were situated and with a home to settle in. When one of her grandsons required special glasses for his rare eye problem, she did the best she could to relay the message to me at O's place by having V push her on her wheelchair all the way over. I noticed that she was at her best when faced with adversities and hardships. At those times, nothing could stop her.

She was a hardworking mother and a survivor. At a young age, she had taught me every task imaginable, from mangamunti, mag talok, mag tanom ning kamunti, to fishing in the swamp. Mother liked to pull tricks on me, as well. During one of our trips to the swamp, I tried to have a feel of the bottom of the water in an attempt to find holes where fish or crabs may be hiding. Little did I know, she went from behind me and felt my bottom, which scared the heck out of me. Ang hona ko some ugly creatures invaded my private zone. She laughed hard, of course, and had preserved those memories for kicks and giggles.

I was amazed at how well she was able to maintain her sanity and speech in a clear fashion until her last breath. Being the only person with authority, she was able to convey to her nieces and great nieces to settle their differences and to reconcile with one another. Truly, she epitomized the woman whose love extended far beyond her children.

Much as I want to be with her today, God knows how much I tried as I almost booked round trip ticket but I am sure she understands the financial dilemma that I am facing right now. And I had her permission.

Mother, together with your amerikanang granddaughters, S and A, and my husband S, we love you. I know Jehovah will welcome you in heaven with open arms. May your soul rest in peace.

S Concert at the Cafe

2006-12-24T15:25:00.000-08:00

Last night, S held a concert in our local coffee shop intended for the typhoon victims in my village. About 50 people showed up. It turned out to be a little too many for a small coffee shop to accommodate. Some people chose to watch her in standing position. Many of her high school friends came and watched her, too, and hung out for a while even after the show was over. People thought she did excellently!
In this picture, S and A sang a song that S composed called, "Day After Day" that was sung at the high school graduation 2005 by the Payson High School Modern Choir of which Alexis was a member. It was a beautiful song full of memories of her high school years. The two of them beautifully executed the song.

Here, she sang a song titled, "Trust" which she composed a year ago and has remained untitled for some time until her friends found an appropriate title for it. It is a beautiful song and is one of my favorites from her repertoire.

From all the snapshots taken at last night's concert, this one is my favorite as it captured her emotion as she beautifully sang the song.

Well, of course, the show was not complete without the mother's participation. Though, I haven't been strumming the guitar in years, I thought I would give it try just on one song. I did practice a couple of night prior but it takes a while to develop that calluses on the finger tips. Luckily, I made it through without being obvious that I was hurting. Whew! Glad, I only had to perform once that night.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

2006-12-22T16:00:00.000-08:00

Para sainyong lahat: Maligayang Pasko at Manigong Bagong Taon!
Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

A 's Solo

2006-12-17T13:58:00.000-08:00

My daughter, Alexis, beautifully rendered a song today at a church entitled, "Let Us Be United", with the choir supporting her. She has this beautiful high voice that complemented the choir just perfectly. Of course, I gave credit to the choir director for orchestrating the proceedings. I wish I could have recorded the song and let you hear it.

Alexis is graduating this year in high school and will go to Northern Arizona University. Time really flies by quickly. Not too long ago, she was just a little girl. I can't believe that she is going to college this fall. Soon, I will be the only teenager left in the house..hehe.

Hmmm, I have been thinking. How did I end up with two daughters who do fairly well in singing? I am pretty sure they got it from my side of the family because my husband can't even carry a tune. He sings a song with same note all throughout..hehehe. I can sing, too, but I never had a chance to cultivate it in my younger years, thus, it went downhill. I do sing and strum my guitar once in a while, but I don't have as much inclination as I had when I was younger. Nowadays, I usually quit after singing one song. My daughter suggested that I keep working on it but who has the time to do that? I am extremely busy at work with Association's matters and household tasks.

Benefit Concert featuring S..

2006-12-10T15:02:00.000-08:00

Benefit Concert featuring local artist, S. Concert will take place at Fireside Espresso located at 614 N. Beeline Highway on December 23, 2006 at 7:30 PM sharp.

All proceeds will go to the typhoon victims in her hometown village in the Philippines. She will be singing mostly original songs.

Padre D said he will try to fly to Phoenix to sing along with S. It will be nice if he can come. A couple friend of mine from Roosevelt, AZ said they will be there. I expect to have a good turnout.

Wish us luck.

My Family is Safe, Thank God!

2006-12-10T08:45:00.000-08:00

I posted this picture here as a sign of promise and hope for our kababayans who went through the emotional trauma from the severe beating and pounding of the brutal typhoon Reming (Durian).

I finally heard from my brothers on December 6, 2006, six days after the typhoon Reming ravaged our poor island of Catanduanes. He probably felt how anxious and worried I was to hear from them so he took his tricycle and bravely traversed the road to Viga despite of the uncertainty and perils that lay ahead of him for three hours one way, thus, incurring 6 hours total travel time. That is a lot of traveling just to get in touch with his sister and relatives in Manila.

The first thing he said was my house in P is okay sustaining only minor damage and could be easily fixed. Thank God! Next thing he told me was that they were okay except that one of my brothers lost his house completely. I expected it to happen though, initially, I was in denial hoping that a miracle would happen and spare the house. I wonder how he felt about losing his house. Still in shock, he must be devastated and feeling helpless thinking of how and where he will get the resources to rebuild his house. All sources of livelihood perished, and the whole situation is in chaos waiting for it to go through its course. I felt so sorry for him. Even though I don't particularly like this brother of mine because of things that he does which I will not elaborate here, but I will try my best to help him financially to reconstruct his house with help from my dear friends and relatives. I am not made up of money myself but with God's help, I am positive that I can make it happen. A studio type concrete house will suffice, something that will withstand typhoon repeatedly.

I scheduled a benefit concert in our community featuring my daughter who will be signing her original songs for the benefit of my brother and poor relatives in my barrio on December 23, 2006; http://diveintoblue.com/. There are about 20 families in my barrio living below the poverty line, deeply in need of food. I am unsure if the rations that are being sent to Virac ever reach the far flung barrios. There are no reports that said so.

In addition, I am planning to send vegetable seeds like pechay, talong, long beans, and bittermelon (if I can find bittermelon seeds here) ASAP. My Japanese friend is starting to procure dry goods such as legumes, etc to bring along when she travels with me to Catanduanes for the first time early next year. She is a good-hearted woman and resembles Mother Theresa. She wants to do humanitarian acts instead of relaxing and enjoying her vacation. That is nice of her. She is aware that our poeple need all the help they can get to recover. The government aid, if ever there is any reaching our place, will quit after sometime and so they need to plow that soil now and start planting though there is no guarantee that the typhoon will not come at least for the time being.

Hope, you, too, are doing your part in helping the people in your hometown, as we can't rely on the government alone. Let's all help beyond our family however small it may be.

Lastly, make God part of your daily life. It is never too late to study Bible.

Typhoon Reming Wreaked Havoc in Catanduanes, One of the Worst.

2006-12-04T07:29:00.000-08:00

Awful site to behold! Those are tyhpoon Reming aftermath pictures that I lifted from deepskin's gallery,
http://www.catanduanes.info.
I hope he doesn't mind. I guess some of these pictures were taken from a military plane that flew to the province of Catanduanes to deliver relief goods to the typhoon victims..

I lived in Catanduanes for 16 years and I had experienced typhoon of this magnitude when I was in grade 3. Our house just as you see in the aftermath photos was torn asunder and all our personal belongings were either ruined, blown away or slobbered with mud. What a tragedy, indeed.

This recent tyhpoon was no different from the one I experienced some eons ago. I know how my fellow Catandunganons felt. I share your losses and your pain, but life must go on. Somehow, with God's help, you will manage to put your life together just as you used to by starting all over again.

To this date, I am worried sick over the safety of my 4 brothers who live in the typhoon strongest hit area, Bato. It is now Monday December 4, 2006; 5 days after the typhoon brought havoc in our island and still no news from my relatives. It is heartbreaking especially thinking of my poor little nephews who had to go through this terrible ordeal in their younger years. I couldn't even imagine how frightened they were as the typhoon blasted and made a direct hit to our beloved island. How did they manage to stay safe amidst all these destructions? Did they all get drenched? Did they sleep overnight with their clothes wet? Did they sleep with empty stomachs? I hope it will not forever leave a scar on these young ones as it were to me when I was a little girl.

We will not know for sure what they went through until we hear from them. My mind is wandering right now as to what exactly are they doing at this very moment. They are probably still in shock and confused or are thankful just to be alive. Or they are trying to retrieve parts of their houses like the tin roofs that were buffeted by the powerful wind so they don't have to sleep another night without a roof. I am afraid to accept that one of my brothers may have lost his house completely as it was made out of woods and nipa huts only unless there was some Divine intervention from up above. Waiting not knowing what is going on is killing me.

I still remember vividly the aftermath of the monstrous typhoon Sening some 35 plus years ago. My mother tried to recover the rice grains that were washed away into the ditch otherwise we would not have anything to eat. Fortunately, she managed to get some of it but eventually gave up when she became very ill after being exposed to unsanitary condition. She almost died! We were staying on a floor of our house with roof caved in. It surely was a traumatic experience for a little girl like me. However, it was not her time to go just yet so God let her live for another 35 years.

While it offers consolation to know that there were no casualties in the town of Bato, yet, on the other hand, it is saddening to know that 90% of the houses sustained substantial damage. Even strong built houses suffered a beating. All vegetations were strewn all over the ground. Looking at the aerial pictures of the island, Catanduanes, it looks like a war zone. It is an eerie sight to behold! Classes were suspended because school buildings were without roofs. The teachers will likely to give lessons in residential houses like when I was in grade 3.

I hope that all Catandunganons and filipinos alike will try to pitch in to help our poor kababayans recoup from these devastation. Every little help counts.

Security Tips to help prevent "Identity Theft".

2006-11-29T21:36:00.000-08:00

I thought I would pass these valuable tips on to others.

The next time you order checks, have only your initials (jn place of your first name) put on them. If someone takes your checkbook, they will not know if you sign your checks with just your initials or your first name, but your bank will know how you sign your checks.
When accepting credit cards, it's important that the "back of the card is signed by the customer." Some credit cards are issued with a picture and signature of the customer laminated on the front. The signature policy is the same and the signature is still required on the back of the card. "Do not accept unsigned cards." If the card is unsigned, request a photo I.D. and have the customer sign the back of the card in your presence. This policy was established by the credit card companies and it is an added layer of security for merchants as well as customers if a dispute arises.
When you are writing checks to pay on your credit card accounts, do not put the complete account number on the memo line. Instead, just put the last four digits of your card. The credit card company knows the rest of the number, and anyone handling your check will not have access to the complete account number.
Put your work phone number and address on your checks instead of you home information. If you have a PO Box, use this for your address. Never, ever, put your Social Security Number on your checks.
Use the credit cards company's address as a return address on your payment envelope. If someone intercepts the payment, they will not have your home information.
Copy all of the contents of your wallet or purse on a photocopy machine. Copy both sides and you will have all the information needed to contact the individual companies in case of lost or theft. When traveling abroad, keep a copy of your passport with the paperwork.
When you check out of a hotel that uses card keys, do not turn in the keys. Destroy them. Many of those little cards carry on them all the information you used on check-in including address and credit card numbers. Someone with a card reader or any employee of the hotel can access all this information.
If your wallet, purse, credit cards, etc. are stolen, call to cancel the cards immediately. They are probably already being used. Next is to file a police report in the jurisdiction where the theft or loss took place. Lastly is to notify the three national credit reporting agencies and place a fraud alert on your name and Social Security Number. The alert means any company checking your credit will know of the stolen information and will have to contact your personally by phone to authorize new credit.

The phone numbers for the three agencies are:

Equifax: 1-800-525-6285
Experian: 1-800-397-3742
TransUnion: 1-800-680-7289

Stir Fry Vegetables- Yummy In Your Tummy

2006-11-27T09:03:00.000-08:00

This morning, my husband and I took a walk along the lake again. While walking, I started thinking of what I was going to fix for lunch today. And this is what I came up.

To be continued.

Typical Rural Life Scenes

2006-11-25T18:03:00.000-08:00

These were some random shots taken a year ago in my barrio in Catanduanes. I especially chose these pictures to post in my blog because it depicts rural life activities that I was accustomed to. Having lived outside the Philippines half my life, I surely miss everything from home. Indeed, the saying, "no place like home" is true!

Have you ever experienced eating food on a banana leaf? I don't know what it is about it, but the food tastes so much better on these leaves and it makes you devour food in great quantities. Nowadays, people are starting to use banana leaves as lining/covering on native plates made out of rattan in social gathering. . It is convenient and very economical. When you finish eating, all you need to do is throw away the leaves in the compost pit. Because it is perishable, it will decompose over time, and will make good fertilizer for our garden. You see, nothing is wasted in the whole process.

When I was little, I couldn't hold still in the house. Well, for one thing, we didn't have television or toys to keep me entertained and I didn't like being cooped up in the house all day long with nothing to do. I preferred to wander into places with my friends. Sometimes, we would stay in the tree house for hours and end up napping because the cool breeze from atop seemed to hypnotize us. Often, we were awaken by the holler of my father from the house, screaming obstreperously for my name mandating me to come home. I ran as fast as my legs could carry me, afraid of the possible consequences that would befall me ; the dreaded whipping. I was supposed to be home helping my mother in the house. If I got lucky, depending on his mood, he spared me the lashing...usually whips on my poor bottom..hehehe.

Other times, we would go in the forest looking for firewood. Woods were so easy to find then. We usually got our limit in no time giving us more time for fun and little mischief. We had hilarious memories with Antutan tree close to where we searched for firewood. Antutan tree had a loathsome scent which resembled like a "tot." I think that is the reason why the tree was called Antutan because of its smell. It made us gag. Anyway, we would pick some leaves off the tree and would deliberately have someone sniffed on it without his/her knowledge. Oh boy, was she/he infuriated, and attempted to pay us back. I made sure I always watched my back just in case someone was pulling that same trick on me from behind. Hahahaha...silly memories!

Those pictures above show rural life scenes typical in my barrio. In the afternoon until dusk, people like to gather outside along the side of the road just to catch the latest news/gossips or to chew tobacco. Chewing tobacco was common among the elders including my father. I had done some errands for my father on many occasions looking for nganga ingredients such as buyo, apog, bunga, and some tobacco in the neighborhood. There was absolutely nothing from that concoction that appealed to me. Yikess! It was gross. Why were the elders so hooked on it was beyond me. I am so thankful I didn't become a nganga chewer.

One picture above shows myself sitting on the balcony railing with my feet up. It is my favorite position when I need a relaxing chat with friends and relatives. It looks funny and odd but I feel comfortable in this position. Try doing it yourself and let me know what you think.

The other two pictures are of my mom who just passed away not too long ago. In one picture, she is seen making the molido that I promised to bring a friend in the US. She was the only one in the family who knew how to make the molido. Unfortunately, she didn't pass it on to any of her kids.

The other picture is of the four of us; mom, me, and my two daughters, playing domino. Somehow, she managed to communicate with my daughters even in broken English. I am glad, she had a chance to bond with my children before she joined with the Creator.

Our Thanksgiving Trip to Roosevelt, AZ.

2006-11-23T19:35:00.000-08:00

On our way to Roosevelt, AZ. to spend Thanksgiving dinner with our friends, we stopped at the viewpoint and took some pictures of the Roosevelt Lake. It was once the largest man-made lake in the world. It offers many recreational activities from boating, fishing, jet and waterskieng, camping, and just merely sightseeing. When the lake is full, it can cover more than 88 miles of shoreline, big enough to accommodate large crowds.

We had good memories in this lake with family and friends. We used to go fishing here and caught quite a few of crappie. I remember my husband tossing the children in the water from the boat and they got a kick out it. They were like little fish. They swam for hours until their lips became purple and puckered up from soaking too long.

The picture on top is thornless Prickly Pear. Seven years ago, my husband planted the cactus about 2 inches long. When the plant was little, Javelina liked to chew on it, undeterred by the cactus' spines, so my friend, Bob, installed a perimeter fence for protection. Now, they don't seem to bother the plant anymore because, for one, it might be too tough for them to chew or it could be that the Javelinas (wild stinky peccary, which resemble wild boars) feel threatened by the plant's size. It is about 8 feet tall. Huge!

The Saguaro Cactus, the second picture from the top, is the state flower of Arizona. This particular cactus only grows in Arizona, and in Mexico. It grows very slowly, perhaps an inch a year, but to a great height, about 15 to 50 feet. This particular cactus has five arms and is about 25 feet tall. It blooms in springtime and it surely is a pretty sight from the freeway. The flowers are about 3 inches wide and have many creamy petals around a tube about 4 inches long. The fruit of the cactus is edible and was the food source of the Native Americans of the region. They used the flesh, seeds, and the juice.

I have tried eating the fruit of the Prickly Pear only to be stung by its spines. It can be deceptive because the spikelets are not that visible until you touch it. The spines quickly prick your skin as if they are being pulled my a magnet. The fruit itself tasted good but the pricking incident was enough to dissuade me from picking the fruit off the plant unprotected. The use of gloves is absolutely necessary in case I decide to try another shot at it. .

It took me an hour to get rid of the darn prickers using a twissor. Oh, I actually had a friend remove it for me.

Sinigang na Bangus

2006-11-22T20:02:00.000-08:00

This is what I had for dinner tonight--siningang na bangus. It was delicious. I could eat this meal every week and never get tired of it. I know, for foreigners, this dish doesn't look appetizing. My husband, who is an American, doesn't care for it. Sour soup doesn't appeal to him. My eldest daughter is allergic to fish. Even the steam from cooking the fish makes her sick. This time, I turned on the exhaust fan at full blast. She didn't even notice it.

In this dish, I threw in six different vegetables; okra, eggplant, long beans, Taiwan bok choi, radish, tomatoes, jalapeno peppers and slices of ginger. I used a combination of tamarind and guava ready-made broth. I didn't use any oil or butter. I made sure that I did not overcook the vegetables. I put in the bok choi last, covered the pan and turned off the heat. This dish is very satiating even without rice. It is a healthy dish.

Bahay Kubo

2006-11-21T22:16:00.000-08:00

Remember the song, Bahay Kubo?

The song goes like this:

Bahay kubo, kahit munti
Ang halaman doon ay sari sari
Singkamas at talong, sigarilyas at mani
Sitaw, bataw, patani.

Kundol, patola, opo't kalabasa
At saka meron pang
Labanos, mustasa
Sibuyas, kamatis
Bawang at luya
Sa paligid nito puno ng linga.

I took this picture when I went to the Philippines 3 years ago. I was just fascinated by it. The moment I laid my eyes on it, it instantly brought back some childhood memories: the rustic primitive abode, the simplicity, peacefulness, and slow paced way of life, to name a few. Nowadays, people are always on the go, and are deeply engrossed in their chosen careers that they don't have time anymore to appreciate simple and little things in life. We spend more time at work than at home. We barely know our own family. Sad, isn't it?

For me, this picture reminds me of home...not just a simple structure or dwelling but a home where the HEART is. It a place where you can kick up your feet and relax. It is a place where native delicious cooking takes place. It is a place where family spends more quality time together.

Many years ago, when I went back home, I always made time to visit my friend who used to live in this house. I spent few hours with her. She was a bit retarded. She talked to herself a lot especially early in the morning when everybody was still in deep slumber. Since we lived right adjacent to her place, I couldn't miss her blabbing. I got used to it and considered it as my morning alarm clock.

One thing, though, I had noticed about her, she didn't owe anybody anything. She was debt-free. She was a hardworking and self-sufficient woman. Amazingly, she never ran out of food, and she ate three good meals a day composed mainly of brown rice and vegetables. She threshed her own rice grain producing a nutritious brown rice. She was a good fisherman as well. When she went fishing at the swamp, she always came home with a basket full of seafood. She would convert half of the catch into cash for her personal expenses, and she would keep half to her own.

Unfortunately, she passed away several years ago. She left behind this special house.

The Mogollon Rim

2006-11-19T17:10:00.000-08:00

This afternoon, my husband, Steffi, and I went for a history lesson, and took a hike as well in the Mogollon Rim. It was quite a drive on an unpaved road. The road was not that bad though compared to the road going to Puraran in the Philippines. The fastest we drove was 30 miles an hour.

We went to see the battleground of US cavalry and Apache Indians. It was located at the Mogollon Rim (mountains) at 7,500 feet elevation . When it became impossible for us to drive further, we swerved right into the open space to park. Then, we began our grueling hike. The hill was precariously steep! I saw footprints and droppings of elks and deer. The trail was rather gloomy. I begged my husband to turn around because coming back was harder yet, and it was getting late. But, he stubbornly acted as if he didn't hear me and kept going. Steffi was right behind him. I maintained a good distance from them from behind because just in case he made a sudden turn around, I would save myself from traversing the challenging and slippery course. However, he carried on and so I walked a little faster as I didn't want to be left further behind. I caught up with them in no time.

The battleground was interesting. It was an open space where the US cavalry and Apache Indians fought ferociously. However, the Indians did not come out victorious in this fight, one of the few they lost. This battle was actually the last one fought between the US soldiers and the Indians. It was called the Battle of Big Dry Wash, year 1882.

The lake you see is called the Blue Ridge Lake. The water is green. I was thinking that should we get lost, we would be able to survive for a while because of our close proximity to the water although I doubt if we would be able to handle the freezing temperature at night Steffi was singing the whole time. I could hear her echo from the other side of the ridge. I urged her to stop because the place was eerily quiet and I was afraid of annoying the invisible people...hehe. She would not listen.

Steve had a hard time climbing the steep hill back. He called me chipmunk because I cruised right through it while he groaned and moaned. He took forever to reach the top.

The pile of stones you see is a marker that people put together to find their way back. I saw quite a bit of them. We followed the stones and took us right to our destination.

Cauliflower Mushrooms

2006-11-19T10:56:00.000-08:00

Have you seen this type of mushroom before? It is rare and it is exceptionally good. My friends from Seattle go mushroom hunting right around end of October and they usually find boxes of wild mushrooms of various kinds. Our family went with them once, and it was a pleasant experience. You need a pair of good eyesight, though, to find them.

Anyway, cauliflower mushroom grows mostly in rocks and at the base of the rotting fir trees. It is a fungus so it grows in sunshine-free places and requires plenty of moisture. Once it is established, it can grow fast and within two weeks, it is ready for harvesting. Mushroom hunters must pick them at the right time. otherwise, if they wait too long, the frost will get it, and besides, its lifespan is short.

This particular mushroom can weigh as much as 40 pounds. The one they found weighed 28 pounds. Can you imagine lifting one that heavy while hunting?

Baboy or Pig

2006-11-19T08:40:00.000-08:00

My daughter had a blast seeing a pig for the first time in her lifetime in the province. The pig put quite a show, too, and seemed happy to meet my daughter. Sadly, this particular pig was long gone as it was butchered for the fiesta two years ago.

In the province, every household raises a pig or two to earmark for special occasion, usually, a fiesta or wedding. It takes about 6 months to grow one to a shoat. It used to break my heart when the pig was about to be slaughtered. I went as far away as I could so I would not hear the squealing.

Pigs are very intelligent animals, and they make good pet. I remember when I was young, I used to put my mother's pig to sleep by rubbing his belly. He loved it! Reason why I got attached to these creatures, which made it hard for me to see them butchered. I wished there was a way of butchering them the easy, painless, and crueless way.

Pigs do not have effective sweat glands so they cool off during hot season by immersing themselves in the mud or by using water. They use mud as a form of protection from sunburn. They like rooting dirt with their snouts. They practically eat everything, from greens, insects, worms, rotting carcasses, and even their own young.

My Hometown, Catanduanes, Philippines

2006-11-19T06:06:00.000-08:00

Familiar with the scenery? Beautiful, isn't it? It is a picture of idyllic setting in my hometown. My daughter took this picture when the rice plants were all green, which made it interesting. Yes, we do have rice terraces that we can call our own.

When I was little, about 11 0r 12 years old, I took a job of planting young rice plant for people, and I got paid Ph6. 00 a day for it. Boy, for that money, it was a hard job! Not only that I had to be in muddy soil, slogging through the mud for more than 8 hours, the job was backbreaking! I started at 7 AM and ended at 5 PM. When I came home, I couldn't see straight from too much fatigue. Right after I finished dinner, I went straight to bed and slept through until morning. When I woke up, my whole body ached. I was lifeless! It took me several days to recuperate. Then, I began to realize that it was not worth it for me. I told my mother that I would/could not do this again, and she understood. I swore to never submerge my feet again in that muddy soil.

Trike or tricyle is a major form of transportation in the province as shown in the picture. It is not a comfortable ride, and it produces significant noise and air pollution. My husband had tried it once and wasn't thrilled about it. Since half of the road in the province is paved and the other half is unmaintained, it is hard to avoid the potholes, thus, making the ride hellishly unpleasant. My husband preferred renting a van instead to take him to and from. Fortunately, there are available cars and vans for rent in Catanduanes for reasonable cost, and usually, it comes with a driver for free. Of course, tip is optional. I ended up tipping my driver because he was very nice and helpful to us all throughout our trip.

Naturally, I don't mind hopping in the tricycle because I grew up with it. My brother owns one and just like car, it takes us anywhere and whereever we want to go and yet, it is not expensive to operate and maintain. For people who have limited money, owning a tricycle is the way to go.

Puraran Beach House

2006-11-18T21:17:00.000-08:00

The house below is located in the island of Catanduanes, Philippines, in the town of Baras, in the barrio of Puraran. It is just a short walk to the ocean, about 100 steps to the beach. The 2 pictures on top are of breathtaking Puraran beach.

Puraran is a surfer's paradise. It has powerful waves that break into corals 100 to 200 meters from the beach. Surfers and tourists from all over the world come to this place to take advantage of the majestics waves that people rave about or just to relax and enjoy the beautiful sceneries. It has white sand. The beach is nestled by the mountains on the east side. Two resorts here offer basic accomodation for reasonable cost. For Ph300, you can have a room and two meals. The meal is mainly composed of rice, fresh fish, veggies, and a bottle of water.

This house is still going through finishing stage. When it is done, it is going to be up for sale for Ph4, 000,000, which includes furnitures and appliances. The house should be finished by March or earlier. Personal items are not included. So, if you are a retired surfer and would want to live frugally in a state of the art house, this is a perfect place for you. You get fresh fish from the local fishermen, and sometimes lobster at reasonable prices. You can also hire a maid for US$50 salary per month. If you are interested, email me at liwayway07@yahoo.com.

Beautiful Green Valley Park, in Payson, Arizona

2006-11-18T20:15:00.000-08:00

On our walk this morning, I thought of bringing the digital camera along to capture some routine scenes along the way. This lake is within walking distance from our house. It is a beautiful man-made lake. Of course, all lakes in Arizona are man-made except for one. This particular lake, however, uses reclaimed wastewater. It is planted with trout, crappie, and sunfish. People from different places come and fish in this lake.

This afternoon, I saw a kid catch a large trout about 14 inches long. He was happy and excited! He proudly showed his trophy catch to his grandpa who was situated on the other side of the lake, who, also, was fishing.

To fish in this lake, an adult is required to have a license, otherwise, if you are caught, you are fined. The license costs US$16.00 and is good for a year. However, kids, ages 14 years old and below (not sure) are free. When my children were little, we used to go fishing here. It was fairly easy to catch a limit. I cleaned them good and fried them until they were crispy. It was a good treat!

Payson, by the way, is located about 90 miles northeast of Phoenix. It is where the mountains meet the desert. It has the largest Ponderosa Pine forest in the country. One thing I like about Payson is, it has four seasons so there are so many things to do and and see all year round from golfing, hunting, fishing, and camping. It is one of the free ozone places in the US.

My Delicious Pansit Dish

2006-11-18T19:56:00.000-08:00

Since my daughter is here for Thanksgiving break, I thought of fixing her favorite dish, which was pansit. I used shredded barbeque pork that I bought from Best Hongkong Dining in Phoenix, AZ., and some average sized shrimps. I sliced some carrots, celery, and Taiwan bok choi. I added some stock for more flavor.

It hit the spot. It was flavorful. I had a good serving, and came back for seconds and so was everybody else. The other dish I made was left untouched, hopefully, we will have it for lunch tomorrow.