Memories of Pancit

10/365 Days of Happiness : Pancit Guisado and Max’s Caramel Bars

Like 365 Days of Happiness in Facebook

Pancit guisado is my favorite noodle dish. It’s something I would never get tired of eating. Be it home-cooked or bought from a nearby carinderia.

Pancit bihon or pancit canton, or a combination, sometimes simply called pancit in the Philippines, is the national handa in birthday parties, supposedly for long life, but it is also served in other occasions.

Whenever we have pancit at home, we try to bring some in the office and share it with colleagues. Today, even without an occasion, we asked Leng, our colleague, to bring pancit. Her mother, Manang Dalia cooks delicious pancit.

We served the pancit and slices of bread in paper plates. The image reminded us of the many birthday parites we attended when we were young. Pancit, slice of bread and orange juice (made from concentrated Sunkist orange juice). Pancit really brought back some fond memories of our childhood.

When I got home, things got better. I had a box of Max’s caramel bars! My mother had her check-up and they had lunch at Max’s. How sweet mother could get? I love caramel bars! 

Rainy Monday

9/365 Days of Happiness : Rainy Monday

Like 365 Days of Happiness in Facebook

What would you do on a rainy Monday aside from singing Rainy Days and Mondays?

It’s Monday morning and the gentle patter of drizzle against the windowsill is a lullaby seducing me to sleep. Good thing today is a rest day.


Having worked overtime last week, I was beginning to feel signs of sleep deficit; so I took Monday off and spent the day sleeping hoping to pay off some sleep debt. 

If you are one of those who feel getting by on less than five hours of sleep is a badge of honor, think again. You'll understand why you need sleep when you see what happens when you do not get enough.

When you do not have sufficient sleep, you may become:

1.    Cranky - You're overly emotional.  Sleep deficit can make you irritable and short-tempered in the morning.

2.    Unfocused and Forgetful - This is unproductive whether you are at work or at home. This could also lead to poor judgment.

3.    Sluggish and Clumsy - You wake up groggy, dying for a nap or a cup of coffee. If you have not been sleeping well, you will find it difficult to perform your activities as lack of sleep causes impairment of abilities making us clumsy or uncoordinated.

4.    Unhealthy - Insufficient sleep is a risk factor for obesity. Ever noticed being hungry all the time when you lack sleep? Chronic insufficient sleep increases hunger and appetite.

If you feel any of these signs, consider taking a day off and repay some of those sleep debt.

What Does Viber and Kare- kare Have in Common?

8/365 Days of Happiness: Getting Connected

Like 365 Days of Happiness in Facebook

Viber


I woke up to the sound of my phone ringing. It's a Viber call from Ate Sann, my sister who now lives in Japan. My sister gets to call us (me and my family) more often now, thanks to Viber.


It's my sister who suggested I get this app. She started using the app while she and her classmates were planning their class reunion last year. Facebook and Viber were their most common means of communication. 

Viber is way better than Skype and Facebook video. It's our new favorite app. 

When my sister was just starting her family in Japan, we communicated mostly through snail mails. Prohibitive phone calls are for real emergencies. Now, we can talk about anything for an hour without worrying about the cost. :)

Kare- kare

I had kare-kare for lunch. Yum! 
Digs, my brother,  sometimes cooks for his family on weekends. And it's always something special. 

What made it more special is that he never forgets to send us some.

Kare-kare is a family favorite. My mother cooks it on special occasions so this special dish brings many special memories.

So what does Viber and kare-kare have in common? Today, both of them got our family connected. And it will keep on doing so, until Viber gets replaced by a new and better technology. Kare-kare will always stay, I bet!

Three on a Weekend

7/365 Days of Happiness : Three Reasons to Be Happy

Like 365 Days of Happiness in Facebook

It's a great weekend. The exercise of looking for a reason to be happy is becoming a healthy habit. 

Of so many things that made me happy, here's today's Top 3:

1. Gratitude 365
I found this awesome app where I can keep notes of things I am grateful each day. It is such a handy journal.












2. Snack Date with Cousins.

The snack was great but the talk was better. 

What started in Wingman as discussions on presentations and business models ended five hours later  in Chef Tatung with bigger plans in Pharma Consultancy, pursuing MBA, and traveling. :)

3. Hugs and Kisses from the Kids - AWESOME.

Saving the BEST for last. 

As if the day's happiness was not enough, I came home to five amazing kids. 

I kissed Cholo first because he does not visit us often. [Thanks, to his dad, my nephew, Bryan and Adonna, Bryan's wife,  for bringing him and letting him spend time with the family. He will grow up knowing his roots].

That kiss and big hug snowballed. The other four kids fell in line and asked to be kissed and hugged. How wonderful could that be. Four kids eagerly asking to be kissed and hugged! 

So I kissed and hugged Ayhen, a granddaughter from a niece. Then, my three musketeers, my regular weekend visitors, MJ, Kayla and Marfie.

That definitely made my day - an icing to the cake!

[The background for the photo is from Dreamstime Free Images.]

Gratefulness

6/365 Days of Happiness: When Letting Go of Something so Little Means A Lot

Like 365 Days of Happiness in Facebook

Sampaguita is the Philippine national flower, but whenever I see sampaguita garland I associate it with gratefulness rather than nationalism.

I feel safer in a cab when I see sampaguita garland hanging in front mirror. It somehow assures me that the driver is God-fearing and that garland is an expression of his faith. Most Catholic Filipinos would understand this association.  Sampaguita garlands are sold in front of churches and people buy them and offer them to statues or images on their altar at home. 

That's what I imagine this water vendor I observed one Friday would do when he gets home. 

It was Friday afternoon. Traffic was heavy as expected. I already had good one-hour nap but I was still in Magallanes.  I was thinking of transferring to MRT to get to work faster but seeing that the queue to MRT snaked around the Alpha South building somewhat discouraged me so I stayed in the bus and for the lack of things to do while our bus crawled in traffic-jammed EDSA, I just went on to observe the goings on. 

The one that caught my attention was this water vendor that got on our bus in Ayala. It looked like his day was done. His pail and Styrofoam box (used for carrying bottled water) were both empty. He was going home. 

In a smaller street after Ayala, there was a sampaguita vendor. The water vendor alighted from the bus, leaving his pail and Styrofoam box in the bus, went ahead to buy sampaguita garlands. Unexpectedly, traffic got better and the driver just sped away. The bus conductor looked worried as she checked on the water vendor, who was running as fast as he could so he could catch up. Fortunately, he did.

What made me appreciate this moment is that this man alighted from the bus to buy those garlands. He could be earning so little but he was willing to let go a portion of it so there’s something he could offer at the altar – a sign of his gratitude. It’s a little portion, but it meant a lot.

I Was Alice; This is What I Saw When I Stood in Front of the Looking Glass

5/365 Days of Happiness : Reflections


Like 365 Days of Happiness in Facebook

I received an SMS from a friend. There seemed to be some urgency in the tone. It was  a message you would like to attend to immediately. So I did, as soon as I could;  and I am glad I did. 

We talked. She 's sweet, she's fierce, she's funny.  One moment explaining, the next, crying, then laughing. Oh, she needed someone to talk to and I was there to listen.

But this is not her story. In the midst of all her woes and sobs, I saw myself. I have been there before. The way I saw things then was the way she was seeing them.  

For a while, I was Alice. And this is what I saw when I stood in front of the looking glass. Slowly, the pieces all came together. What had changed?

Letting go of pain and anger had cleared my head of clouds of anger, pain, and sorrow.

I am seeing things now from different perspectives.

“Fools vent their anger, but the wise quietly hold it back.”  Proverbs 29:11

Anger is a choice. When you get angry, you choose to get angry. Nobody is forcing you to get angry and nobody can make you mad without your permission either.

At different points in our lives, we dealt with people who made us mad, people who disappointed us, people who insisted their way, and people who would not listen.

How do we deal with difficult people? demanding people? disappointing people?

Be tactful. The way you say something determines the way it’s received. If you say something offensively, it’s going to be received defensively. Even if you are right, if you’re rude about it, people are not going to care what you have to say. They’re just going to get defensive.

Be pleasant. The more pleasant you are, the more persuasive you can be.

Be understanding. They may be stressed. They may be sick. They may have a family issue. We do not know what their battles and burdens are.

Be at peace. Pray. You may be fuming mad, yet the other parties might not even have the slightest idea. Pray for yourself and for them, and for world peace. Sleep soundly.

Happy Birthday Bruno

4/365 Days of Happiness: Happy Birthday Bruno

Like 365 Days of Happiness in Facebook

Happy birthday to the world’s most adorable two-year-old cutie pie!



Two years ago, you came to our lives. You, cute little thing. From then on you were the star of the show! 

Since your first birthday, your experience and age has doubled, but so has your cuteness. Happy birthday little one. You are officially the Caridad baby.

You have crawled into our lives to give us happiness, joy and wonder. With you, the dreariest of days brighten up. Who can resist you and your adorable facial expression? One look and you win hands down. There's nothing more awesome than your version of Puss in the Boots look and charming woof.

You are the naughtiest two year old I have ever seen but no one punishes you because you are the cutest two year old there has ever been, but Chichi might if you keep on chewing on her notes. On your birthday, I wish that you never grow up and keep harassing the twins with your mischievous best.

We hope you have love it here, being a part of the family and tolerating our idiosyncrasies (we tolerate yours, too.) We cherish each moment of having you. Happy Birthday to the cutest baby in the whole world, Brunski!