Welcome Home My Precious!

After almost a month of waiting, finally, I get to use my netbook again! Its motherboard was replaced with a new one. I didn't pay a single centavo because it was still under warranty. Oh yeah! Now, all I have to do is to be more caring with my netbook. But there is one problem- it got heavier, I think. I maybe just imagining it but it was really heavier than before. Anyway, I am just happy that it's now fixed. Next to my books, my netbook is my other bestfriend. Another precious object that caters to some of my human needs- getting online and storing pictures. ^_^

Of Blog Absence and Laptops

Ever since I started this blog with my writer spirit on high, I also started being busy with school work. When classes opened, my blog was not my first priority anymore. There were lots of things to think of and to finish. Semestral break came this year, and my fingers were itching to type all the canned ideas from several months of different adventures. I had a mental list of what to do for my 10-day break. Unfortunately, the force was not good to me. Just when my free week was starting, my netbook crashed! My sister couldn't fix it until now. All my important files still hang on the balance. So, even if I want to start blogging my experiences, my entries would be incomplete without my visuals.

I am now using my sturdy 17" Compaq, which basically helped me with numerous school projects for almost two years. Oh, how I've missed looking at a widescreen laptop. It's screen is HD by the way, and graphics are way clearer than my Eepc netbook. I guess I have to stick with my old pal for a while 'til the little one regains its power. I like my netbook because it is handy and my shoulders don't hurt anymore whenever I bring it to school. But I also love my HD lappy because it helps me with my visual aids in my classes. I also conduct film showings inside classrooms using the widescreen Compaq.

Absenteeism is not a good thing, neither is a broken laptop. All I can do now is be patient. Wait for my li'l lifeline to come back. Though, I didn't get to do what I have planned in this blogging world, my writer's spirit still did not fail to rescue me from total desperation.

Writing will always be my comfort zone, with or without a blog, with or without a laptop.

Sweet Surprise

My bestfriend, Beth, celebrated her 31st birthday last July 12, 2010. Before the said date, we participated in the 34th National Milo Marathon, where she sprained her ankle while running. She had to walk the last 3 kilometers because her ankle was already painful. After the marathon, she went into numerous visits at the hospital because she did not only feel pain but also developed allergy from the meds she took. When it was the day of her birthday, she did not plan anything special, so I and the other girls decided to surprise her. When her meeting in the afternoon was cancelled, she immediately texted me to meet up with her at Bonifacio High Street. She waited for an hour at Starbucks, while we waited for Ghel who will be coming from Pasig.

We entered the coffee shop singing the Happy Birthday tune with the box of cake on our hands. Beth flushed upon seeing us. She kept on saying, "Ay, Nagba-blush ako! Nagba-blush ako! Na-surprise ako! Ghel bakit andito ka?! Bakit ka naka-red?!...." She never expected that Ghel would come, too. She was truly surprised.

Of course, with our frappuccinos, we gorged on the chocolate mousse cake. We didn't bother if they would add up to our calorie intake. Everyone was so happy that we forgot our diet!

Beth-Day turned out to be a really sweet day with a sweet surprise for a sweet lady!

Grilling the Tomato

I am now a sucker for kebabs!

While I was surfing channels I chanced upon MYX's feature of an eating place at Tomas Morato. It was called, Grilled Tomato, which offers another Persian-inspired cuisine.The name of the place sounds good, so I decided to check it out if the food in their menu also tastes good.

My pretty cousin, Alyssa, agreed with me to have dinner there. She ordered the Keema, and I went, again, for the beef kebab. The pita bread was also delicious, especially if you dip it in the curry sauce. I have never liked the idea of a bread being dipped in curry. Because when I visited Kuala Lumpur a few years back, the strong smell of the curry in every dish they served wasn't that pleasant to my nose.






The prices at Grilled Tomato are very affordable. Ambience though, is far different from Persia Grill. If you are looking for a place to eat where you get to enjoy affordable and tasty kebabs, then visit Grilled Tomato. But if you opt to be in a cozy place with that touch of Mediterranean feeling, go to Persia Grill.

Going Persian

I was not a sucker for kebabs (THEN). The first time I had one was when Ate Dhang and her husband, together with their babies, gave us a dinner treat at Mr.Kabab in Quezon City. I wasn't that excited to have a taste of the Persian meat dish. But I curiously devoured every inch of the kebab they ordered. Until now, I can't even remember how it tasted. I just told myself that it won't be my favorite food.

After 2 years, I came across the dish again. Aileen, introduced me to Persia Grill along Valero St. at Salcedo Village, Makati City. I wasn't that excited to have lunch at the resto, but she assured me that the kebabs there are really good and affordable. We ordered the BM1 or Business Meal 1 on the menu, which costs only Php120. It is composed of one beef skewer, rice and a mixture of yogurt and eggplant and grilled tomato on the side. It also comes with a small bar of butter to be mixed with the rice while eating the kebab.

My indifference to the kebab changed the moment I tasted it. Aileen was telling the truth! This time, I can now say that I will always remember how delicious it is.

Last week, I brought Beth, to Persia Grill at SM Megamall. She ordered the chicken tikka and I went for the beef skewer. With a shawarma plate and our kebab meals, we enjoyed our Persian food experience with large gulps of raspberry iced tea!


BM1-Beef Kebab

Shawarma Plate
Beth enjoying her Chicken Tikka

Missing Him

It has been 12 days since Pompeo left for Texas. I am missing him so much. Though we voice-chat almost every day, still, I can not say that would be enough. His physical presence would be a much better pill to take away my depression. I know he would be back soon. And I just can't wait to be in his arms again!

We have endured the seven-year separation. This time, I believe a couple of months without each other wouldn't hurt that much. Keeping the faith is what kept us going strong all these years. God is so good to us that He gave us the perfect time for everything.

A Blank Note

Like a ghost transcending into its forever solitude.

I couldn't react. I couldn't stop. I must do it. I had hoped that these trying times would end. That I would be able to sit or lie down in a room filled with utter silence. Reading a book I should have read years ago. Watching Giada eating a pie in a small restaurant in the country. Or savoring each dish the Contessa is magically preparing before my eyes.

All I could do now is wait. But waiting is not enough. I have to inspire myself to continue what I have loved most when I was in my teenage years. To be trapped once more in a world that only my 30-ish bestfriend would understand. Because she also lives in a world like mine. Nobody would be able to comprehend how depressed I am with what's happening. Nobody would be able to tell the difference. They would only see a woman who has become inattentively bored and excruciatingly passive.

2 Weeks Notice

This is insane! How will I be able to finish the school paper and the yearbook in two weeks? I am not that motivated enough to write, to edit and to layout. I've been doing this work over and over again for a couple of years now, still, I have never picked up how to do it in the easiest and fastest way. My bestfriend has been helping me in editing the articles. She told me that I like to cram, which is an attitude that I would never be able to take out of my system. I like cramming. But cramming in my situation today is not necessary. It only kills me.