candle light

In my hometown we light candles for departed souls at the cemetery and at church. And before All Soul's Day people gather at the cemetery to clean and paint the tombs. There is some kind of festive atmosphere (don't know why!), more so during All Sain't's Day (1 November) and All Soul's Day (2 November).

These days people observe/celebrate(?) All Soul's Day more than All Saint's Day. I sometimes think that people do not observe All Saint's Day anymore. They just troop to the cemetery with their merienda (refreshments -- cooked snacks, beverages, junk foods), or whole day meals on November 1! They light candles and offer flowers. People use this event to bond with relatives and friends aside from praying together for departed's souls.

one of the neighbors lighted more than the others

In the evening even when we were still residing in Quezon City, the neighbors light candles at their gates or by their main doors. I learned that the lighted candles were for the souls of departed relatives or acquaintances of those who were not able to visit those soul's graves! Inaaaang!

for a dear... dear... departed...

Anyway, it's been our practice to light some candles during Halloween/ All Sain'ts/Souls Day.

solemnly burning...

preserved fruits

In my last Quiapo jaunt, I bought some big apples for my kids. I chosed those apples 'coz they were really big, looked juicy, crunchy, and yummy! At home I was the first one to have a taste (hehehe). I peeled and sliced half of one and decided to bring it with me to work. It tasted bland and paper like, so I decided not to finish even one slice.I learned later that nobody at home did not like the taste of those apples. So everybody snubbed the last apple on the tray.

the apple

It's been a month since I bought those apples, so I was really surprised when I again noticed the last apple on the tray.

another shot of the same apple

It still looked so fresh as if it was just freshly picked! Even the stem looks fresh! Golly! There must be something in that apple for it to look as good as it was when I bought it!

another shot...

I learned that those apples came from C - - - -!

and another...

I don't want to put things in bad light here. But as you can see in the photos of the same apple that I'm writing about, it still looks fresh as if it was just picked hours ago!
I read somewhere, most probably from one of my emails that some commercial fruits are covered with transparent wax to keep them from spoiling faster than their natural shelf life.

toxic@#$*

Hello!
I know i haven't posted anything lately and my fingers are really itching to type some words. But I don't want to post just anything, like what I am doing now(yeah, yeah...).
Work is just so toxic these days...Were running after impossible deadlines...
So, I will post later, I already have some materials I would like to post.
I just don't have the time now.
But sooooon I will.

kite flying?

Last week I had to attend a company function. The atmosphere was a bit relaxed and it was held at the Mall of Asia's SMX, so some officemates and I decided to watch the test flying of the company's entry to the kite contest on November.

back of MOA

It turned out that they were doing the test on a vacant field at the back of MOA near the iMax theater. It was a long walk from SMX to that place! Luckily I love strolling, besides the sea was just a few steps away...

kite flying beside MOA

I was a bit turned off with the gray border of the kite. Somebody said the cloth was supposed to look transparent on both sides of the colorful kite painting. I guess some of us were a bit disappointed with the appearance. I was expecting that a competitive design was conceptualized before I saw the kite. It turned out that the maker was not able to follow the design in detail. But their sales pitch can almost convince you that the kite was made into how it should really be.

having fun!

A lot of kites in different designs were being flown then. The company's kite also caught the camera's of ABS-CBN's MUB (a morning show). The segment producer had their camera trained on the company kite and (yeeeha!) to us! I guess we were included (hoped!) in MUB's Thursday 02 October 2008) show about those kites...

that guy was pedalling on to something-that doesn't-look-like-a-bike-but-works-like-a-bike while trying to control a "kite" that looks like a miniature parachute with his hands, hmmmmm... i wonder how is it called...

those guys were flying another "kite" which looked like a small parachute, care to tell what it was?

the field was strewn with seashells, the place was an intertidal area that was reclaimed

Pamilihang Sentral - local supermarket

last weekend we decided to buy some days supply at the Pamilihang Sentral in Dasmariñas. the kids tagged along too. i was kind of happy that time, because its been so long since we've been there and because all of us went!:)...

this was taken infront of the palengke, it is a lot bigger than this picture suggests

the local supermarket's aisles, there are a lot of stalls

from this stall we bought one whole chicken, the kids love to eat fried chicken, don't know why...

charcoal stoves made of cement and recycled oil cans were also on sale. we have one too. we use it when hubby cooks bulalo or when we have to cook the meat longer, and of course for grilling.

a lot of locals use these charcoal stoves

another stall sells these charcoal stoves which were made of metal

we bought some eggs here

at the back of the main palengke (market) is an extension, a lot of stalls are there also.

the market's extension, more buyers go here than to the main market (just across that street), maybe because the place is more airy, and the goods here are fresher

the vegetable section at the annex

my daughter took this photo, we were standing between the fish and vegetables section at the annex waiting for her dad

hubby choosing what to buy at the fish section

comfort food for tired feet and gloomy weather

hubby and i went to Quiapo earlier this year (yeah!, this post is a bit late, hehee) and like the hundreds of Quiapo shoppers we looked for a place to eat, to ease our growling stomachs!

so serious? a bit hungry, heheee...

i am not that adventurous when it comes to choosing where to eat. i prefer to be safe than to worry later! so we choosed Chowking a local fastfood. that resto specializes in noveau Chinese food. hubby wants to eat some hot noodles and i want a large glass of black gulaman (black jelly juice, tastes sweet and refreshing) so we agreed on eating at that resto.

our lunch

hubby's order

i choosed the braised beef and rice meal, 'coz that meal is familiar since my college days while hubby who loves pansit (fried egg noodles with some meat and veggies) ordered noodles with pork wanton (fat egg noodles with wanton in thick soup).

my braised beef looks as if it's n attacked! heheheee...

i decided to finally post our quiapo jaunt 'coz of the balmy and cold weather, which we are experiencing now...

Solsona - brooks sing in my town

Its been so long now since I last visited the place where I grew up. From my relatives’ stories it seems that a lot of infrastructure projects has changed the town.

I love the morning breeze and the fog that envelopes the town and its barrios. Bucolic. Sounds old and a bit corny but for me — that (!) is the right term. (How long it will last, that, I am not sure).

A cousin gave me copies of some photos that I’ve been asking from her. I was awed when I saw in some of the pictures that fog still envelopes the town in the early morning. The air at such hour is so cold, very fresh, your exposed extremities get numb and you may even get the chills. It is at this hour that a short dip in one of its rivers or streams is best. The water may be cold but it totally refreshes you and gives just the right shot of adrenaline to power you up for the day! The water that nourishes the town flows from mountain streams. In some places you can still dig holes beside riverbanks, let the water settle and get clearer, then you may drink the water from your small well right there. The water tastes sweet and refreshing, yes, it is still clean.

The people in my town are very hardy, more so the barrio folks. They farm well and they know how to make use of their environment efficiently. They gather freshwater shells from the rivers and stream. They cook these into unusual but yummy dishes when fish is hard to catch and the harvest is low. They may use kaingin in their farms but they plant trees not only for subsistence but also for shelter. I believe that an increasing number in migration and global influence are somehow causing a difference in my townmate’s ideals. A lot of them are in a hurry to catch up with the rest of the world. Some are not aware of the grave consequences that their efforts to improve their lives has produced.

I feel sad when I last visited my town. The town may have progressed into one of the most progressive towns in the whole province of Ilocos Norte, but sadly the landscape has changed.

I get emotional whenever I am in the open field. I love open spaces. I love breathing in the fresh air, more so of my town. I love to look at the green fields, the meadows, paths criss-crossing streams into the woods, wide rivers whose waters turn from crystal clear to green and to deep blue. Brooks sing in my hometown, the sound of the water sound like melodies to my ears. I get so happy just by gazing at streams slicing farmlands, even in irrigation ditches and canals (built by the local government and a Japanese construction company). If you are an outdoorsy person you will understand what I am trying to say here.

I love how nature is in my town, I just hope that the quarrying, illegal logging, and other practices that are accelerating its environmental destruction will abate. I hope that the local officials or NGOs will see to it that the town’s natural environment be saved. I am hoping too that reforestation and saving the water sources, as well as saving the river shorelines from too much dredging and quarrying be given immediate consideration, before it’s too late...

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artsy

I always encourage my son to do whatever I think will help him choose whatever path he chooses once he reaches that stage. When he was just a toddler, I encouraged him to watch kiddie shows, clapping and laughing with him to make him more curious of the show on TV. I believe that kids watching kiddie shows like Sesame Street, will think and act smarter. I believe that these shows stimulate the kids to think and learn to analyze. Some may have different opinions. But hey, that's my opinion, and I believe that in my son it paid off.

He likes to draw and his drawing surprises us sometimes. You would think that somebody at least five years older than him may have done the drawings. In fact he won in the art contest during Nutrition Month at his school. His drawing of a family living a healthy life won him the first prize! His price? I asked him what was his prize and he said ,"...an apple." So I asked where was it, he calmly told me that he ate it right away 'coz he was hungry!

He is also into molding different clay figures. He molds figures modeled after Pokemon characters and other cartoon characters, and whatever catches his imagination. Here are some of the clay figures he did on a lazy Saturday afternoon.

I can't figure out this one, I guess he just molded whatever idea came up

This too, I am not sure if this is a bug or something

Yep! A donut...

A clay replica of his pet goldfish

passing by -- Asia World City!

When I passed by the Pacific Avenue on to Macapagal boulevard near Mall of Asia – one of Asia’s biggest malls, I noticed that on weekends (it was a Saturday when I passed) the vehicular traffic is moderate at around 1-2 in the afternoon. A lot of empty large lots are still up for sale in that commercial zone.

Buildings and businesses are popping out like mushrooms.

But there is one area that sticks out like a splinter – the Muslim area—I call it that way because of the mosque erected as a last ditch effort (some people think) of former squatters to keep their stake on the land (prime property at that and may cost millions. Something that none of them would even think of buying at the current market price.)

oops! sorry I was riding on a bus on my way home when this was taken

Baclaran is just across the (National Highway) road. The land’s location is proximal to Baclaran and may have played a big role in the fomer squatter’s decisions to stake their claim on the land.

The government is spending lots of tax money in improving the reclaimed area (the bay once hurls its waves at the sea wall now canal wall that skirts the Asia World City.