Yesterday, my Ate and I met up with our newly wed cousin and cousin-in-law at Konbini Store Tokyo Market along Connecticut St. in Greenhills. It was a small grocery store that sells Japanese stuff like chips, seasoning, desserts, drinks, etc. It felt like we were really in a convenience store in Japan. :)

The store was at the same time a restaurant. So you order your food and you do the tricky part - choosing your drink based on their looks. It's an exception of course if you can read Japanese. Lucky I chose a bottled milk tea that tasted good! :) My cousin picked what we thought was green tea, it was very bland though. 

After filling our tummies, we decided to have desserts at Caramia in Amici. We had gelato cakes and gelato ice cream as well. 

Thank you soo much cousins for this experience! We had a great time laughing around and eating good food. :)

Busog,

B.

Sometimes we feel like we have this heavy baggage that we carry around everyday - stress, worries, financial problems, petty problems and all sorts of negative thoughts. We think that we have the worst problem in the world when in fact there are people who have nothing to eat, nowhere to sleep, no one to talk to, bedridden or mentally challenged. 

Before complaining or doing something stupid, try looking at the positive things around you. Appreciate whatever it is that you have and keep in mind that those things might be exactly what others needed during their down times. Do not take things for granted. 

As for myself, I always look at how blessed I am for having a great family. Yes, we don't have a dad and yes, we do have problems to solve. But at the end of the day, we had more than three meals, we have beds and linens, we have a great house that is miraculously safe from floods, we had good laughs, we have electricity to use, cold water to drink and fresh clothes to wear. These are simple things that we use EVERYDAY but are most of the time not appreciated by many. These are the things that help us get by and provide us comfort, but these are also the things that we fail to thank God for. They are so common that their importance is often ignored.

Life is simple, we only make it complicated. Worrying won't take us to the better place. It only makes us paranoid, ugly and inefficient. So before anything else, take a break, sit back, close your eyes, take a breath and fill your mind with positive energy. As you exhale and open your eyes, you'll realize the real meaning of life. :)

B.

Last Saturday my family prepared nacho salad as we watched movies during the night. We have this plastic bowl/tray that separates each ingredient - onions, cabbage, grated cheese, ground beef and tomatoes, which prevents it from getting messed up. 

Today we still have the leftovers from the nachos and I still have about 1/4 cup of sour cream (which I used for potato salad) that I don't want to waste. Since I was craving for a Mexican dish, I thought of using all the left ingredients to come up with a homemade snack. :) 

Quesadilla

Ingredients:

Tortilla bread

Ground beef (sauted and cooked with taco powder/seasoning)

Onions

Greens (lettuce or cabbage)

Grated cheese

Sour cream

Salsa:

Finely cut tomatoes.

Heat tomatoes in the oven and season with salt and sugar. 

Procedure:

1. Top tortilla bread with whatever ingredient you desire. :)

Here's what I made:

Three sets with ground beef, onions and cheese.

Two sets with sour cream and cheese. 

2. Cover with another tortilla bread.

3. Heat in oven for 15 minutes at 170 degrees. 

4. Cut into triangles.

5. Plate and serve with salsa and sour cream. 

This is a very easy and cheap dish that requires creativity. Haha. My family loved it! My cousin even said it tastes like Taco Bell's quesadillas. 

Feeling chef,

B.

I’m engaged! Yes, the hopeless romantic me is now engaged!!!

Every woman dreams of having their prince whom they’d spend the rest of their lives with. As for me, I think we’re soulmates (kinikilig). As mushy and corny as it can be, I do believe we’re soulmates. 

Quick Plot of Our Love Story

Just like all other couples, our 5-year relationship has had its ups and downs. We spent the first four years dating, knowing each other deeper, getting through our college days and first job nitpicks, meeting friends and families, watching countless movies, and just simply having the best time together. What we had then was perfect until I went overseas to study.

We talked about what’s going to happen to us before I left. We weighed the pros and cons if we continued the relationship. I didn’t know then if I was ever coming back. We both knew that it was my goal to work overseas. He was very understanding and never stopped me from reaching my dreams. He gave me all his support and even encouraged me. I liked that about him.

We agreed that while I was away, he’ll accomplish his goals and I’ll reach mine. That we’ll grow as individuals and try seeing the world without the company of each other. That we’ll try meeting other people and see how it works out. In short, we’ll live in separate ways.

"Things happen for a reason."

This has been my belief for many years and it made my life easier. I once read in Maxwell's book that our attitude towards situations makes the difference. It's true that how ever we look at things takes us to the next step. I chose to embrace the fact that whenever terrible things happen, despite how bad it may seem and how it can make you feel like it's the end of the world, there is a reason behind why it's happened.

I was 18 when my father died. A stage when I was juggling between the joy of being a teenager and a college student. Then it happened. Just like that he was gone. But I never questioned God for taking him. Never. Because I know in my heart that sooner or later I will realize God's rationale. And this belief helped me move on. It has been seven years now since he left.

I didn't get a job in Australia. After spending too much money for it, unfortunately, I am not there earning dollars and enjoying the winter. At the moment, I can see probable reasons for not getting employed there. And whatever those reasons are, I am happy about it. Very happy about it. :)

You see, you handle things your way. That's just how life is. There will never be someone else to help you get by but yourself. You can either deal with it in sorrow or in joy. It's really up to us.

Sometimes waiting is our best option. When you don't get what you want or you've failed for so many times, just wait. It is God's way of saying that "there is something not better but best for you and I will give it to you at the right time."

Faith
Time
Reason

are three powerful words that can help us during our dark times. Believe in it and your attitude will follow through.

Always positive,
B.

Late post.

Now that my cravings are on hype, I try to satisfy myself with as little expense as possible. For this specific day I woke up thinking of pizza rolls. I remember my good friend, Foxy, bringing this snack for potluck on one of our gatherings. So I searched for the recipe and voila! 

I asked my mom to buy me the ingredients, however making it was very tiresome (maybe just for me). As a newbie, I took time cutting the ingredients and preparing the dish. I had to ask for my mom's help to finish rolling the breads. 

Traditionally, you deep fry the pizza roll. I tried cooking it using a Turbo but the bread crumbs tasted raw. It did became crunchy, though. I guess same thing goes when you cook it in the oven.  I don't know, maybe there's an ingredient missing for it to be cooked non-deep-fried way. 

So, we settled with the old-fashioned style of cooking it - deep frying. It turned out good, in fact, great! I guess the secret for this recipe is the oil. My family liked it. My sister even brought it for baon the next day. There will definitely be a part 2 of this recipe. :)

This is where i got the recipe.

Pizza Roll Recipe 

Next time, I will try to saute the tomato sauce with onion, garlic, bell pepper and whatever I can think of for it to be more tasty. What I made was a bit bland because I used a pre-packed tomato sauce.

Wanna be chef,

B.

Sundays are one of my favorite days. I grew up looking forward to Sundays because it's a day of contemplating on how my week went through prayers in mass. Also, it's family day so it's a day of catching up with my sisters and mom. It's just a feel-good day to everyone in my family.

Last Sunday the priest in Padre Pio talked about how good it is to see God as your father. Literally, your own dad. He emphasized that if you want something really bad and you don't get it, it means God has dreamed of  something better for you, just like how your dad pictured your future to be. He also said that if you pray to God make it sure that you do your part. You can't ask Him for good grades at school and end up not preparing for your exams. You have to show Him that you deserve every bit of whatever it is you prayed for. 

Amen to that homily! Padre Pio priests never fail to give the best messages. :)

For lunch, we decided to take our cousin to Banapple. This is one of our favorite restaurants since the serving is worth its price. A meal is good for two, at least for our family. I once had my own meal and didn't finish it. 

Everyone was full and sleepy after our heavy meal. Good thing it was raining and cold, perfect time to lie on bed and sleep. I feel blessed to have my family to spend my Sundays with. :)

Have a great week ahead! 

B.

I'm so glad I got to see Macau even for just half a day. It would be so much better though if my friends and I were able to explore more of this beautiful place. Here are some photos of our quick trip.

Last March, my friends and I went to a quick Hong Kong - Macau getaway. It was the first out-of-the-country trip my barkada had, and we didn't even expect that it would really happen since majority of our plans were just plans. Haha. It was nice that we had our trip days before my birthday so it was like a grand birthday celebration for me. 

After a long day of having fun, my friends gathered all our strengths and dressed up to party at Lan Kwai Fong. It's a place for drinking, partying and dancing. We hopped from one club to the other, and we met nice Filipino workers as well. 

Of course, we didn't miss the chance of going to the happiest place on Earth, Disneyland. Unfortunately, we didn't get to see the parade since we came a bit late. 

During our last day, Anna and I met up with an old friend whom we met back in Australia. She was an exchange student in the same university I go to. Now that she's back in Hong Kong and us the same, we grabbed the chance to catch up with her. She took us to a tea place where we had iced fresh teas and toast. She also bought us the most delicious egg sandwich I've ever had from an authentic restaurant famous for making egg recipes. Lastly, she took us to a grocery store where we shopped for pasalubongs.