Theatre Night

It was awesome!!

Details to follow.

Circuit Breakers

It was all very sudden.

I was standing in the middle of the kitchen dicing potatoes and slicing wedges of cabbages, while keeping an eye on the simmering pot on the stove. It was a bit dark, and I reached over and flicked on the light switch, when I heard a pop and the bulbs on the counter went out. I quickly turned off the light switch and unplugged the mixer, blender and toaster.

When Nards arrived, I let him look at the non-functioning counter overhead lights.

"The bulb shorted." He was examining the bulb closely.

"I agree with you."

"I'll fool around with the circuit breakers and see if we can get the other light." He opened the panel and started flicking the switches.

This is where the fun began.

Switch #1, turned off all the electricals in the living room including the computer. (There goes torrent. *Sigh*) Obviously not that one.

Switch #2, turned off the stove exhaust, and half the lights in the kitchen.

Switch #3, turned off all the electricals along one wall of the living room. (TV, radio, DVD player, playstation)

Switch #4, did nothing.

Switch #5, did nothing as well.

Switch #6, turned off the exhaust and the lights in the bathroom.

Switch #7, turned on the other bulb over the kitchen counter. Bingo. I was offering Nards a Sharpie and masking tape, so that the circuit breakers could be properly labeled. But he declined.

After all of that was taken cared of, I told Nards that the beef stew is simmering and we'll have dinner after I take a shower. I went in the bathroom, turned the knob that would activate the heater in the shower, and turned on the water. The water was cold. The heater wasn't working. I asked him to look again at the breaker box.

We repeated the circuit breaker exercise. Again, I offered the Sharpie and masking tape, but it was declined once more.

When we couldn't trace which circuit breaker to switch on to power up the water heater, we transferred the socket where the heater was plugged. It was back to normal.

We ate dinner, and after the dishes were cleared, Nards went to the laundy area on the balcony, to put on a load. The washing machine won't turn on.

Again, we repeated the whole circuit breaker exercise. After several attempts, Nards plugged the washing machine to another outlet.

I wonder if we have to repeat this whole exercise, when I turn on the stair lights to go to the second floor....



* Just realized this is my 200th blog entry*




*

No Good Plan Goes Unpunished

Needless to say that I woke up at ten am stressed out to the roots of my hair. When I got down to the kitchen to start on the first order of the day (measure out ingredients for cookies), I was wont to enter the kitchen. The smell of the last batch of chocolate chip cookie was still in the air, and I warily sat down on the couch where I promptly dozed off.

I was in no mood to bake at all. Or to even run the errands I've mentally listed. So instead, I bailed on the Lantern Parade. The grade sheet can wait until next year and they paycheck is something to look forward to on the new year. I was so lazy and incapable of doing anything remotely related to a cookie that I holed up in the bedroom instead.

I will not be attending the party later.

If there's anything I've learned in running a sideline like a cookie business, a lot of your leisure activities (i.e. attending parties, hanging out with friends) take a backseat. Instead of eating, dancing and listening to Noel and Vin sing tonight, I will be holed up in the kitchen, baking. I don't think I'd make good company anyway, I'm exhausted, and my body just wants to crawl in bed and sleep.

I want to wrap Christmas presents, but that too has grudgingly slouched off in the backseat.

Stresssssss.

Must Sleep

It's 4:30am and I can hear the church bells. It's Simbang Gabi time. I haven't attended dawn mass for the Christmas novena since 1992. For a few seconds, I was actually tempted to take a quick shower, dress up warmly and join people walking in the chilly morning to go to church. But I stay put, and just listen to the bells.

I've been up since 2am and haven't been able to go back to sleep. This is such a drag, especially since it's going to be a full day today. There's a new batch of cookie to be measured out and mixed; a trip to the Apple store to buy something for Papa; a trip to the college to sign the grade sheet and get my paycheck (very important); dropping off of receipts to the office for my reimbursements (again, very important); watching the Lantern Parade in UP - and if there's time, a quick turn at the bazaar; and the Rock Ed year end party at mag;net cafe (Gang is wondering if we can all be there early for a family/class picture).

Must sleep.

Bi-Polar As Opposed To A Manic Monday

This morning I woke up early to put together my brother's cookie order. He ordered 30 half-dozen boxes of chocolate chip cookies, which he'll be giving away to his work colleagues. The original plan was for me to go to his office Tuesday (that's supposed to be tomorrow) morning to drop off his complete order. So what I did was market for all the ingredients (including the other cookie orders) last week. Then I spent Saturday morning doing baker's math (i.e. multiply my recipe originally for 24 servings to the amount I needed for the week. Divide it into manageable batches, relative to my available mixing bowls and fridge space.) Sunday, I mixed ALL the cookie dough: chocolate chip, peanut butter chocolate chip, and white chocolate chip oatmeal. (Would you believe it took me the entire day? I missed Sunday Silence!! Shet.) I would work on the oatmeal raisin cookies for Nards' family next week, since he was planning to give it to them on Christmas day. Then today, spend all day baking (marathon baking that is) and packaging them in dainty Christmas boxes.



Leave it to my brother to derail my well laid plans. What I thought would be a leisurely baking pace today turned to a frenetic one. I had to do marathon baking for two hours straight just so I can deliver half of my brother's order today. (I need them today, Te, they'll be on leave tomorrow.) Then I had to drive to his office and drop them off so that I can return home before the coding window closes at 3pm. (I can't pick it up because my car wouldn't start this morning so I had to commute to work.) On top of that I have to measure out, mix and bake a whole lot of additional cookies today because he increased his order. (Te, sorry, I miscounted and didn't update my list until this morning. I'll order 10 more boxes. But I might still add more tonight.) WAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!



Now, it's the calm before the storm. I have to rest and regroup myself before I start mixing another hefty batch of dough and baking. I need to finish everything tonight. So that I can work on the other orders tomorrow. I desperately need to talk to someone to bounce off my thoughts and to de-stress from this morning's agitated baking. But everyone is busy at work because it's a Monday. Twitter is offline so I couldn't text Mitzie who's not on YM.



And my heart is going haywire with palpitations. I need to unwind and take it easy. My doctor said I shouldn't get stressed out because of the whole your-left-ventricle-is-weak business. It's quiet and I need to talk. I know I should start on those cookies now. Or else I'll be up all night. And I have to get up early tomorrow to deliver cookies. (One order, all the way to Fairview. I asked my Dad to deliver it for me, but I wasn't comfortable asking him to do it, so I told him thanks but I'll do it instead.)



AAAAARRRRRGGGGHHHHH!!!!



Breathe in deeply. Count to ten. Exhale slowly. Repeat process several times. Put on the first two episodes of The Starter Wife. Watch and relax.



After that, go back to the kitchen and start on those cookies. It'll be better after this week.



There. I feel just a tad better.

My New Addiction

Click here to find out what it is.



Photo by Aggie

Tanga

That's what I wanted to scream at her.



I just keep remembering that it's not nice, and that's what stopped me. Otherwise, not only would I be screaming that but I would also throw in a few expletives as well. I wanted to smack her at the side of her head to knock some sense into her.



She was on her cellphone, yapping away with this stupid grin on her face, while driving. We were all at a busy intersection. Two lanes only, and all the vehicles, including tricycles converged at that place. I was one car away from the intersection, where I was planning to make a left turn. She was coming from my right, in her huge space wagon, and she was making a left turn to go into our lane.



I was watching her (no tints--so you can see her fashionista flygirls-kind-of shades, her huge mouth talking on her cellphone held on her left hand, her right hand on the steering wheel) make that turn. She wasn't able to turn that wheel as she should have, because (duh!) she was only using one hand. So her fender swiped the sidewalk. We (and I'm talking about being in an air conditioned car with the cd player's volume cranked high) heard the sickening sound of metal as it scraped concrete. She stopped. I saw her one free hand put the car in reverse and, without looking at her rear view mirror or her side view mirror, backed up her car. And she inevitably crashed against a tricycle, who got pushed so far back by the strength of the impact that he also crashed into the other tricycle behind him. In addition to that, she also nearly amputated a guy pedaling on his bike. Please note that she HAS NOT STOPPED talking on her cellphone THE WHOLE TIME. She quickly parked the car and hid. She waited for all the angry drivers to pass. Or she was finishing her phone call.







Ironically, she was at that corner where there was a sign that says "don't use your cellphone while driving."



My sister summed up the whole thing in three words: "Gaga Dat Gurl."

Coca-Cola Commercial

Who remembers this? :)

Breakfast

There's nothing better than eating breakfast that comes with a side of shock and indignation. This is what happens when you haven't been inside a Starbucks for more than 10 months, and the baristas are all over you being absent for such a long time.

It was a crummy morning: gray, rainy and cold. I wanted to stay under the warm blankets, but we had to go out for an early appointment. When I got back near our place at around 9am, I drove to the nearest Starbucks for a quick breakfast and something to warm me up. When I got there, I got caught up with the baristas whom I used to see daily, and they wanted to catch up. So my order of bagels and coffee flew out of my mouth. I handed over my payment distractedly. It wasn't until I got in the car, and I saw the sales tape, that my jaw dropped at the exorbitant price I paid for my breakfast.

Tall, Decaf, Non-fat Praline Mocha with My Bagel Sandwich

I ordered a tall, decaf, non-fat praline mocha--whopping Php150!!! Plus a mozzarella, tomato and basil multi-bagel sandwich--Php90, pretty reasonable given the size and the "healthy" side of the sandwich. But the coffee! Holy cow! I remembered the last time I had coffee at Starbucks it was less than Php90!

When I got home, I moodily sipped my coffee and munched on my scrumptious and filling sandwich. The side of shock and indignation left a bitter aftertaste, and I wouldn't recommend that you take it with any meal.

Mozzarella, Basil and Tomato on a Multi-grain Bagel

Photos by Aggie

Akyat Bahay Huling Huli!

How to Break Into A House:

1. Go out with all your roommates.
2. Make sure you lock the front door and each of you conveniently forget to bring a house key.
3. Party all night (Or maybe work all night).
4. Go home past four in the morning.
5. Talk and laugh loud enough for the entire building to hear you.
6. Realize no one has a key to the front door.
7. Start making enough racket to wake all the neighbors.
8. Drag step ladder near your front door, while irritable neighbors watch surreptitiously from their windows.
9. Elect the girl, with the shortest shorts, and skankiest top to scale ladder, rip open the screen from the second floor window. (Landlord will have a fit!) While neighbors, laughing their assess off, watch.
   
10. Watch, heckle and take photos of her, while she struggles and eventually gets stuck in the window. Again, with irritable-neighbors-who-are-gleefully-watching-the-noisy-and-inconsiderate-girls-next-door take photos as well.
11. Elect a second girl to push the first girl's legs in the window. Laugh harder and louder. Wake up more neighbors if possible.
    
12. Finally, first girl, unlocks the front door, and everyone gets in.
13. Slam the door that can be heard all the way to EDSA.
    
14. Leave step ladder in the hallway to cause accidents to other residents.

*click on photos for larger image

Edna Mode in Person

When I saw this photograph at Trash the Dress! on their Trick or Treat Contest Finalist post, I was laughing uproariously. Cindy Cheng is brilliant!

I can almost hear her say, "Edna Mode. And Guest."