Sariling Sikap Series

So when my good friend, Kathy, decides to do something from scratch, she invites me over and lets me wreck all the beautiful things she does. There were grilled seafood and sesame dressings involved in the past, then there are sushis and pizzas present now. We're still thinking of what to do next because she has already baked cookies and even though they're so good, baking cookies is soooo mainstream that almost half of the female population bake. We take in too much caffeine already, making different kinds of caffeinated beverages seem to be difficult to consume - unless we have more people over to drink what we can whip up and share more sleepless nights with us.

Here's the first cheese pizza with dough made from scratch. No shortcuts! What else could go wrong? Pair it with wine, then you're off to lala-land! Lala-land can be synonymous to glutton's world by the way. ._.

That's a freaking 2004 merlot. And some flour on the background.

Then there's the oh-so-common California Maki. Geez, this is so tedious to make/prepare! And it involves a lot of handwork, I wonder how restaurants do this? I love you, Japanese mayonnaise and tobiko! :*

Yes, we're pretty mad about mangoes and crab sticks!

When I make something unpretty, you'll never know if I made one because it'll be in my mouth - gone in 10 seconds, and then I'll deny ever making an "unpretty" sushi. Ok?

Planet Grapes

I have stopped posting about wine not because I have stopped drinking wine, but because I have been drinking faster than I can post or write something about it. I have tasted gewürztraminer, which is my new favorite (sauvignon blanc is still my all time tastes-like-real-wine favorite), riesling, sweet reds, orange moscatos, plus pink moscatos and pinot grigio on the pipeline.

The white zinfandel on the right sucks. Left bottle, goodie!

Oh by the way, since we're here, don't buy Sutter Home's white zinfandel. It's just wrong. Spend more money on some white zinfandels from Beringer. Those, are the good stuff. Sweet as your usual moscatos but with a stronger kick - because they usually reach 10-14% alcohol content.

One more, one more! I posted this review before but I want to keep one in my blog as well. It's about this cozy place called Planet Grapes along Tuscany (near McKinley Hill, Taguig City).

We all just want happy grapes!!

I initially asked the server which of their wines have the highest alcohol content. They have Woodstock fortified wine at 20% but we settled for a Spy Valley 2012 gewurztraminer because I said so. Haha. It's difficult when there are lots of options! The bottle costs Php1,400 which is pricey for wine because you can get 2 (or 3!) good bottles for that amount!

Then again, I can say that Php1,400 was worth it. The service was fantastic! The servers (their male servers look like they can double as bouncers) were quick to refill your glass for both wine and water. They'll ask if you want your opened bottled chilled, so they'll put a wine bucket (with a stand) at the end, where it doesn't take up any space on the table.

There's NO food corkage because they don't serve meals (aside from delis and appetizers). On the photo above, that's S&R pizza. I asked if we can eat it there or if we have to pay. They said it's fine and got our food. Our server went back and presented it with their cutesy plates and cutleries. Our Php200 pizza looked like Php450 when plated that way. Uh-huh.

I'm a wine drinker (you don't say!) and I would love to go back here, even if I can get their wines cheaper elsewhere! That's how much I enjoyed it. Yeahp!

Cheese is usually wine's best friend, but then who needs cheese when you have friends and loved ones as company?

November In A Toothpaste Tube (Nutshell Is Too Mainstream)

It has probably been ten years since I last posted something here. It's just that the internet at the office is not friendly for websites that require a sign-in account, so I'm restricted to just viewing and reading blogs (yup, Harvard Business Review keeps me preoccupied almost all the time, nopes, what are you saying that I'm viewing the Oatmeal in the office?!). I've been doing a lot of things in my leisure - that is, time you have for yourself after work/office hours. And usually with the traffic, leisure is just too little nowadays. I have come to appreciate my weekends and officemates more, because how can you survive being in an environment wherein you abhor the people around you?

This post is basically a catch-up for me. I have been through a lot since I last posted an entry. There were ups and downs, but mostly my days have been pretty amazing. So, what did I miss posting about?

I finally bought a coffee burr grinder. Plus I was able to purchase a single cup brewer. I can bring this in the office or just make a cup for myself without having to clean the coffee press or plug in the coffee maker. Lazy asses, unite!!! Woohoo!!

Meet Wentworth the Miller!

I have been lusting for this one in Amazon for quite some time and then one morning, my friends and I chanced upon 2 stocks of this and I basically screamed in delight. Without having to utter 2 sentences, Neth bought one as well and we were ready to swat away hands that would get it before us.

The coffee brewer on the left, with its ammo on the right.

Then, I have finally climbed Mt. Pico de Loro at Cavite. Time to party!!! I have dreamed of going here and just burn my skin from the UV rays while punishing my legs in the process. The falls as a sidetrip is worth it, even if it'll take off at least 30 minutes of your trek time.

Hello, beautiful.

My November was not just about coffee and mountains, there are a lot of food and merriment involved as well, but since this is just my first post for November, I'll divide my posts into a number of entries just because I feel like doing it. Uh-huh, I'm bad-ass that way!

Cars

When you want something memorable, it really makes a mark when the heavens think you'd really want to make things THAT memorable. You attract and draw that thought towards you 24/7. Since 2013 has been a rollercoaster in almost all aspects of my life (I do have social life and other kinds of "life" you can imagine), September wants to top it. How about having a nasty hit from an elf truck whose owner doesn't have insurance? Some "drivers" (because they just pretend to know how to) should never be driving. Yeah you were issued a license, but the skill and the instinct to drive a truck or a jeepney or any vehicle at all - they're just not there.

Hold your temper. Control your voice. Battle the rain. Drive at night with a bumper that can fall off anytime. Get lost. Suffer from the insensitivity of people with authority over the matter (yes, Mr. Traffic Police Photographer). Stretch your patience from Manila to the bowels of the earth. Be professional even if they're trying to rip you off. Smile, sometimes there's really nothing you can do.

It's such a cold, cold world that I can't get out. So I'll just make the best out of nothing that I have.

That was September 28, 2013. I finished paying off Noah the car last September, too, but how about a fancy October? Repaired car from the event above suddenly had a battery that went haywire. What to do? Just add hot water a problem and we can easily sort out the grown-ups from the whiners. There are adults who are whiners, too! But we're talking about maturity and peace of mind here. Unleash all your social skills and rack your memory for possible solutions. Once again, extend your patience till you reach the core of the earth.

Always have a car or portable charger for your phone aside from extra money. But it helps so much if you have someone close to you in times of trouble. Oh btw, August? I just replaced Noah's battery and I was nowhere near home, I was more than 20 kilometers away from home. Oh glob, automotive problems are one of the loveliest problems to have. NOT. I think I dropped my sense of humor somewhere else along the way.

When Cab Drivers Talk A Lot at 7AM

Cab drivers are one of the most interesting (and annoying) people you'll meet, including their highly offensive driving "skills." Last Friday, I intentionally missed out riding with my sister because I can't afford the 7am shuttle from Eastwood to Makati - I'll be late for my 8am meeting. So I hailed a cab and when I told the driver the company building, he asked me, "Sa Shell ka?" I smiled and shook my head, "Ay, sa isa pa pong mga nandoon." He mentioned all of the tenants there and he told me all about why my employer (he eventually figured it out, it was like a Pinoy Henyo moment) thought of having a shuttle would be better than transportation reimbursement (apparently they had this before). He mentioned all about safety and the whole point that the company can't afford their employees missing work since there are only a few folks in a team (by then).

He apparently knew a lot about everything, such a chismoso. And the last thing he told me when he dropped me off? "Late ka na ah." I shut the door after paying and mouthed, "Hindi paaaa!" Yep, the prolong letter A's were really necessary. For the record - I was half an hour early for the meeting.

Yes, I'm still reading the book "Eating Animals" by Jonathan Safran Foer. I have read his other works as well and this topic really just hits the spot. I get to read a few pages each time I wait for the company shuttle or when I'm somewhere else waiting for my sister to leave the office. And just earlier while sitting out the traffic light on my way home, a whole paragraph from page 93 posted a good avenue for thinking or reflecting - whichever suits you more.

Why is taste, the crudest of our senses, exempted from the ethical rules that govern our other senses. If you stop and think about it, it's crazy. Why doesn't a horny person have as strong a claim to raping animal as a hungry one does to killing and eating it? It's easy to dismiss that question but hard to respond to it. [...] Try to imagine any end other than taste for which it would be justifiable to do what we do to farmed animals.

Well, people still eat. Maybe we're stuck at that level of appreciation - taste.

Advice from a Vegetarian: Eating Animals

It has been a while since I posted something in my blog. Mind you, my life has been really been interesting the past few months and this is all thanks to new people, new relationships, and a totally new environment for me. As much as I have been trying to adjust with this new environment quickly, one thing got left behind - my desire for Internet (okay, make that 2 things - the other one being exercise which I have totally forgotten along the way). I got to tweet less, submit lesser reviews in looloo, can go on dayS (the pluralization needs to be emphasized, hence the unnecessary capitalization) without checking Facebook, and my emails just tend to get read from the phone.

So when my friend (thanks, Kathy!) out of sheer kindness (or pity?) gave me this book which I've been looking for quite some time (is a 4-year-search still considered as "quite some time"?), it has propelled a desire to post an entry relating to the topic of the book. I'm currently juggling 3 books at the moment (ADHD much?) but this one trumps them all, so this lovely paperback covered in plastic and one ebook (which is not covered in plastic) would be my friends when I've got some time alone (because I usually spend time with our wall and the ceiling, they make good company, too).

Sorry to disappoint you, but it's not a how-to guide, an instruction manual, or a recipe on how to eat animals. This would increase your eating experience, and your awareness on what you put in your mouth. Freshly cooked bacon? Curses! Liempo and crispy pata? Zermenggerd! I can't probably add much more items in here because I haven't read the whole thing yet.

Then I remember what my friends share with me. An online article from Pepper and a video from YouTube. Please do NOT be a vegetarian. If you think I'm kidding, the online article clearly says our fun times. (I really thought my subconscious wrote that article. I totally agree with what was posted. It is expensive, you'll always be pa-special as your friends would think of what you can actually eat or if their favorite restaurants have options for you. Sometimes, you'll settle for langhap-walang-sarap makeshift salad from restaurants. You'll tend to eat lots of sweets and you won't be thin if you imagined that.

From: http://www.pepper.ph/dont-be-a-vegetarian/

Aside from the article, here's a clip about "Questions Every Vegetarian Is Tired of Answering." Both the article and the video link are hilarious. Why? They are actually true! Sometimes I think of carrying flyers or some note cards and give them away once people start popping questions, but nopes, I won't really do that. Patience is the latest value I am currently nurturing.


Note - if you watched the video, I'll answer the last one. I don't eat french fries and it has nothing to do with being a vegetarian.

Three Years, Not Bad

Michelle Branch once sang, "The last 3 years were just pretend. So I said goodbye to you." Well, it lasted a month longer than 3 years and it was not just pretend. I actually learned a lot and I owe almost all of my learning and experience on those three years. It was not a walk in the park but I have gotten a whole lot along the way, not to mention people I have encountered. They made the years so fast, so good, and so much fun.

Let's put dates so we're all on track.
First Day: June 1, 2010
Last Day: July 19, 2013

Geez. I'm that old already! And then my first day at a new environment? July 22, 2013. Yep, no time to do pre-adjustment exercises if there's such a thing. We just get on and do what we're asked to do. Let's make this interesting, eh? :)

Who? What? Wine?

Well, based from the previous post, we were able to taste 8 different brands of wine. I am thinking of putting in the details of those wine but where's the fun in that? A lot of people probably gave their thoughts about it but I'll just share a couple of those I have tasted before and after the wine tasting class last Wednesday.

So, for Father's Day, we had steak - actually, they had steak while I had loads of potatoes and salad. I picked the wine to be brought to the steak party and thought that a good merlot (semi-bold) should be good enough. Presenting the Little Penguin! It's a 2011 merlot from South Eastern Australia as indicated. I thought it was sweet and not the kind of red wine I was expecting - one that will seep out from my skin from a strong kick. Okay, my white wine bias is showing here. Let's just talk red when there's cheese, okay? It has 13% alcohol and a soft finish - the taste doesn't linger that much in your mouth. Bottomline is that this would probably be my favorite merlot to date and it's not just because I chose it.

Look at those little footprints. Such a cutie.

Then when the first bottle wasn't enough, the uncle brought out the next bottle for everyone. They just got it from a wedding as a give-away. How convenient is that? Here comes Santa Carolina Premio aka "Fruity Chilean Red Wine" which was less sweet than the Little Penguin. A 2012 blend of red wine has 12.5% alcohol and research suggests it's mostly cabernet sauvignon and some other grape variety. Not prunes.

Now for some white wine. South Africa's Two Oceans has come up with this 2011 semillon chardonnay (of course it has sour notes, it's a chardonnay, baby) with a dry taste adding to the 12.85% (or is 12.5%?) alcohol content. Semillon from France and chardonnay from the rest of the world. Two Oceans, indeed. I'm not pretty sure if this is how semillon chardonnays really taste like, the blend is just a little dry for me but I drank it anyway because it's there. (What a douche.) Would I be mean if I say it's tolerable? I'll go around the area and look for a semillon chardonnay to challenge Two Oceans. Not the bottle to bring to your non-wine-drinking friends' party.