So what am I doing...still awake at 11 p.m. at a weekday yet! when I wake up really early at 5 am everyday to prepare the kids' baon and help them get ready for school...nothing really...just that I found the urge to write again...what?!? Did I get that right? writing again??? yes...it's true...all of a sudden I've found the urge to write -no fireworks... no big explosions - I just found myself rummaging thru the inner recesses of my bag for the blue blogging notebook (yup the one which I bought seemingly ages ago to jot down spur of the moment blogging notes). But this time I'm not just writing notes but this full-length article!

I guess even if the computer is just within my reach I find it hard to start writing again because I truly took hard the fact that they took away the laptop the office issued... although at the time I didn't want to accept that yet. So now I guess it's a start that I'm starting to find the urge to write...even if the old fashioned way. I realize that I don't really need a computer to write... all I need is to get back to basics - just a pen and paper and my thoughts...(In fact, I'm typing this in the computer and posting this entry 2 months later)

Well, I am in no special hurry ... I hope to take this one step at a time - and not rush myself into anything... I know it's a bit tedious business writing in a notebook cum diary then typing and posting in the next few days or even weeks...but I'll manage somehow. I know I'll never hope to come close to professional bloggers like my idols Sassy lawyer or Marketman or Ivan or Anna Manila - who always manage to write about anything and everything they put their minds to... but I hope to get there too someday and today is the first day of my journey - so please bear with me...

KITCHEN MISADVENTURE SERIES 7 – Pork Bachoy?

It is my first time to try cooking a dish that is a known favorite of my hubby… and admittedly I had my apprehensions at first because I know for a fact that he is quite a picky eater. But armed with a recipe I got from the blogsite Mga Luto ni Dennis at iba pa, I went ahead and cooked the dish. It is quite simple really – you just sauté the sliced pork in ginger, garlic and onions. Then you add patis and pepper and let the pork cook. After that, some water is added and when it has boiled for a few minutes, you add the misua, a bit more salt and finally, some onion leaves are added. For a complete copy of the recipe, you may just browse thru the website I mentioned earlier… And did the hubby like it? Well, it is a little of yes but no…Yes, he liked the dish enough to eat much during the meal…but he does not consider it a real authentic bachoy (like the one his mother used to cook) and why??? Because it did not have pork blood…well, I do not know how to cook with pork blood and even the market I frequent doesn’t really sell it so I guess I would not have the chance at all to cook bachoy the way he wants it…but I’ll just be content with the fact that he liked what I cooked today…even if it wasn’t really bachoy for him.

OBOY’S NEW HOUSE AT AFPOVAI

My uncle’s house (formerly inside Fort Bonifacio when he was still in active military service) held numerous memories for us as children…this is where we usually hold our get-togethers like Christmas, New Years, birthdays and other simple salo-salos or even summer vacations. But when he retired and Fort Bonifacio was sold and converted to the Global City, he had to let go of the house…and with it all our happy memories… but of course, it never really gets lost because each one of us have pockets of memories stored inside our hearts. And why am I suddenly taking this trip down memory lane??? Well, actually it’s because this uncle of ours wanted to revive that old tradition – for our families to get-together in one big house – eat our hearts out, drink and chat the whole night, sleep over and then the next day get up and eat again. This is why he built this big house in AFPOVAI to replace the old one that we fondly call Q139 (the house number). And today, we got to see the house for the first time …it is indeed quite huge and equipped with all the modern amenities. It is quite airy too so that one doesn’t really need to turn on the airconditioning just to keep oneself cool inside the house. In fact, the house is quite energy sufficient and environment-friendly too because they had solar panels that would save up on some energy. I was only able to get a few pictures of the house…because I only used my cel…maybe the next time we are there I’ll be able to post some more. The pic on the left is the dining area with French windows that lead to the patio and gardens that surround the entire ground floor. At right is the sala where the main door is located and where a mini bar can be found.

The next pic shows the patio where most of our meals are held… the oldies are the ones who usually eat on the main table while we (cuzins) stay outside where it is much more airy and refreshing to eat. Besides, this is usually where the buffet table is placed and so it would be much easier for us to get our food refills…hehehe!

Then, upstairs there are three bedrooms – one for each of his children – for Dot (although he seldom stays there because he has his own quarters at the PSG), the other is for Dian (who lives in Clark, Pampanga so he uses the room only during weekends that he goes home to Manila) and the last is for Ming (the only daughter who lives in Cebu). There is also a big den or TV room that has a few modern sofa beds scattered about for the benefit of those who want to sleep after a huge meal or even stay for the night. There is also a huge open space to the left of the stairs …they say the Uncle plans to put a gym there, but the equipment ordered hasn’t arrived yet….sayang!

I wasn’t able to get pics of the bedrooms…next time na lang! Even Uncle Boy’s bedroom (which is downstairs was off limits e!) It is located to the right of the sala just before we reach the kitchen. What is unique about the house is their solar panels situated at the roof and which takes care of half their electricity bills. Pretty neat huh! Most of their lighting and water heating needs are already covered by the solar panels so only the TVs, fans and aircon shall be billed by Meralco. But with all the huge windows and open spaces for the wind to pass thru, I don’t think they have much need for it naman e. The one thing more that I liked in this house is their guest bathroom situated opposite Uncle Boy’s bedroom – it had blue tiles and a glass blue bathroom sink! How cool is that??? Next time I promise to take more pics of this very pretty and refreshing house!