This is how the cookie crumbled in 2019

When I first thought of writing a recap of my 2019, only the rough spots came to mind. Thankfully, I didn’t write this piece right there and then, or it would have been a totally different narrative – one that is not accurate and completely misleading and full of bitterness.

If I did, I would have only written about regrets, pain, disappointments and how 2019 screwed me over. Yes, I am a cry baby and whiner. Public admission takes so much weight off my shoulders. Hopefully in 2020 I can totally shed my cry-baby whiny skin and learn to grow more spine.

At the point in the year where year-ender reviews are being composed, it’s sad to think that all I could really focus on were the challenges that this year has brought. I realized that life is not meant to be lived like a television series where problems are solved in 30 minutes and everyone had a good laugh afterwards. In real life, the pain lingers, the tears continued to flow days after and the bitterness simmers and bubbles continuously.

I bought a notebook – yes a journal – specifically for this so that I may write down every single thing. But the journal remains blank. I never got the courage to write down every raw emotion coursing through me at the time. I don’t want people to find out someday that I harbored bitter resentments. That I was unable to move on. That sweeping things under the rug just doesn’t cut it anymore. That turning a blind eye is not as satisfying as looking the tiger straight in the eye – recklessly dangerous and there’s a big chance you’ll end up dead, but at the time you’re doing it, it was worth it. That turning the other cheek is simply not my cup of tea.

However, after the explosion of emotions had subsided and I had time to sit in quiet I realized the year did not begin and end with my challenges. The year began with me cruising the Canary Islands with my college roommate and the mother of my godson. As the year opened its doors, I was in Barcelona, one of my most favorite spots in the world. What a blessing that was, right? On the same trip, I got to visit new places with my husband and friends. What else could I ask for, right?

Following this trip, I found myself faced with a big decision. After giving it a little thought I decided I needed to shake up my life. I read the situation as the world or fate giving me a way out. I saw it as a sign to leave. It was the sign I was waiting for in years and somehow it was a now or never kind of decision. I was afraid either way. If I leave, the unknown is pretty scary. If I stayed, the ennui and stagnation are lethal and that’s pretty scary.

Thus, I made my first (stupidly) brave move in as far as I can remember. I left a job I held for a long time to sit on my couch for an unknown period of time. I told you it was stupid. But my husband supported my whim and encouraged me to take a few months off to think things through and devise a new game plan for myself. The funny thing is I learned that introspection is not my strong suit and that I have a hard time reaching my very core to learn what exactly it is that I need and want to do with the rest of my life. I was completely satisfied with the “status quo” that getting the boat rocked was a situation I did not allow myself to ponder. But I sailed through the first few weeks, basking in the glory of extra hours of sleep, no hour and a half commute or the stressful days at work. Eventually I got bored with that as well and I started to troll every employment website there are available and got myself into examinations for county and gov’t jobs. Pretty soon I got called for one interview after another. It was an anxious time because the last time I was at a job interview was some 20 years ago. You read that right, 20 years ago was the last time I went for an interview.

Thankfully, the interview process as I found out remains the same. In fact, I remembered that the interviews I went on 20 years ago were tougher in the sense that I faced a panel (at least 5 in a conference room) of interviewers instead of today’s 2 people or at most 3 people “panel”. The questions were pretty much situational and I suppose it’s not actually the “qualifications” that they are focusing on but on the attitude and how you tackle a particular problem. I answered as I saw fit and in all honesty I did not get very nervous. I did feel a little nervous before the interview while at the waiting area, but as soon as I was ushered in the interview room that all went away.

I got a new job that is a 180-degree change from my previous job. It is also a 15-minute commute (at most) and the boss does not micromanage. It’s quiet, the phone doesn’t ring and everyone just goes about their work when it’s time to work. I love it. There’s a downside to this job, but I’d rather not mention it here right now. I don’t know if I’m going to stay here long, but I love it so far.

Another blessing this year is the realization of my dream to see the so-called Utah’s Big 5 National Parks - Zion, Arches, Canyonlands, Bryce and Capitol Reef. How can you go wrong with a road trip to visit these natural wonders? In addition, we also visited both the Upper and the Lower Antelope Canyons in Nevada. This road trip was formulating in my brain for a decade or so; thus, I was really glad that we finally got it done.

So what will 2020 bring? I don’t know, but I can assure you that whatever it is I’m ready for it.

A Time For Reflection

I am having a tough time doing my year-end post over at my other blog. Usually this comes in easy. I enumerate the places I've been throughout the year and voila I got a post. This year it felt different for some reason. I cannot really pinpoint where the change is or what factors might be affecting this change in my feeling. I have traveled my fair share this year. Somehow I felt it was less than last year, although that is not true. I was hoping that by writing here, somehow, a switch will flip automatically and I'll be able to come up with something to post in the other blog.

I was sitting in front of the computer for a few hours yesterday, which was a great day to just chill after the chaos of the Holidays, but when nothing comes into my head I turned on the tv and lo and behold GAME OF THRONES is running a marathon. I hit record all and thought I'd go out for a bit to see what's on sale, although I truly was not interested. The hubby just needed to get some fresh air, so we went out.

As expected, we didn't see anything worthy. Of course we didn't hit the big stores in the mall, because...why? Anyway when we got back I was eager to continue watching my Game of Thrones, when I realized that the setting on my dvr only records up to 5 epis. OMG, I lost the first five epis. That kinda put a wrinkle on my face right there. Anyway, no harm since I have seen those episodes before.

Anyway that's not why I am posting here now, two months since the last post, I want to practice my year-end post. Sort of a dry run.

In the hopes of getting an inspiration from last year's year-end post I went and scrolled my posts and I found out that I did not do one last year because we left for Bangladesh middle of December and got back home January 9 or something.

Thus my 2016 started in Bangladesh with family and friends and being reunited with a girl I met some years ago who now is a mother yet still maintain the girlish charm.

From Bangladesh we flew to Bali for a 6 day interlude before flying back home. A wonderful time was had by us. Bali is known for beautiful beaches, but I didn't dip in the pool once and we only saw the beach once. We were chasing temples and being culture vultures, ate at local food stands where we got freebies because they want us to discover and enjoy Balinese cuisine.

In May we celebrated our anniversary in Cancun, which is not really a surprise given the fact that we both enjoy Cancun. This time around with a whole week and no itinerary to adhere to we were able to visit Xcaret, an ecological theme park. In past visits, we have tried to dismiss coming here because we thought it was a Universal Studios kind of park, but wrong we were. What an incredible place to enjoy culture and nature.

For my birthday in August, we went to Florida and had a theme park trip visiting both Universal Studios and Disney World. In addition we had a beach day at Cocoa Beach. I'm starting to like Florida, especially since the food is awesome. Had Venezuelan and Puerto Rican cuisine while there.

In the fall, we gathered up friends and had a weekend of quiet in a cabin in Alpine Meadows in the Sierras. What lovely time we had and such a beautiful cabin. We hoped to be back someday.

Now just before all the craziness of the Holidays friends emailed us of a cruise that's reasonably priced. Since I had a previously approved vacation time around the same time we said yes to a cruise. So in November we sailed the Caribbean stopping in both the British and US Virgin Islands and Bahamas. A much needed break before the chaos of Christmas preparations.

2016 was just another year in terms of travel, but the focus of the year for me was friendship. We have continued to develop the friendships we have and enjoy other people's company more. We went out to eat more, we went to each other houses to eat more and we traveled together this year. We are lucky that we have friends who become family.

May 2017 be kind to all of us. And please laugh more this year, it's good for you.

2014: A Breakdown

January – February – March

The first quarter of the year is a good time to travel when the weather is mild and the crowd is nowhere in sight. We were quick to avail of a Vegas vacation package on sale. While hassles arose due to scheduling conflicts and changes, the Vegas trip went as planned with the exception of how to get there. Initially we were to fly but we drove instead(long story) – road trip #1 for the year.

The trip was meant for photo walks. Finally got to see Zion National Park, although I always thought that we would hit the big 5 at one trip, this side trip to Zion was well anticipated and thoroughly enjoyed.

On the same trip, we returned to visit Valley of Fire State Park, a park that stole my heart at first sight, then stole it again on second sight.

While we didn’t get to see much of Vegas nor experience much of its allure, the trip was worth it. Vegas became our home base as we visited nearby parks for photo shoot. Death Valley was in the plans but we ran out of time, may be next time.

April – May – June

Road trip #2 to Lake Tahoe and Yosemite. Stayed in a cabin with Murphy’s bed (my first) in North Lake Tahoe (first time too) for two nights, drove around the lake stopping to enjoy the sights and took a lot of photos by Emerald Bay lookout. Took the scenic drive through Highway 395, stopped to admire the tufas in Mono Lake, entered Yosemite, took photos, drove through and rested for the night at the borrowed cabin of friends in Groveland.

The next day we set out to do a little hike at Hetch Hetchy Reservoir in Yosemite. Hetch Hetchy Reservoir is the supplier of drinking water for the city of San Francisco. The day was pleasant, quite warm for late May, but the scenery was fantastic and we engaged in photography.

This trip also made us see the devastating outcome of the rim fire a year ago that gutted a huge part of Yosemite. It made me sad to see a large portion of the forest burned, but likewise pleased that regrowth has been happening and nature started to heal itself. (In the summer, another fire came to Yosemite. I am not sure if it was in the same area as the year before.)


July – August – September

The summer months are my time to hibernate. I normally don’t schedule any trips around this time, because I know that this is the peak season of traveling. Kids are out of school so the sights are crowded, the hotel rooms are expensive, and the weather is super hot.

However, summer is perfect for a camping trip to nearby Samuel P. Taylor State Park, an hour’s drive from home. The camping trip was organized by my husband for our church group. We stayed for two nights, cooked our meals, sang songs around the campfire, roasted marshmallows, hiked, some went to nearby beach, played games, did yoga under a cathedral of tall redwood trees, and afterwards had a mass in the same site.

October – November – December

For three weeks in October – November, I was in 2 continents, 6 countries (7 if you include a layover in Germany), 4 islands, 7 cities.

The trip/s went like this:

Flew to Venice, stayed there for 2 days. Took a cruise for 7 days and visited the following Greek islands: Corfu, Mykonos, Santorini and Katakolon.

Cruise returned to Venice and stayed in Lido for one night.

Flew to Barcelona, stayed for 2.5 days. Took a cruise for 9 days and visited: Marseilles, Genoa, Malaga, Casablanca and Lisbon. Decided to leave cruise (was on the way back to BCN)and stayed in Lisbon for 2 days.

The flight back was long and exhausting. It went like this Lisbon – Barcelona – Munich – San Francisco. It felt like we were flying for a whole day.

Thank You 2014

A new year is in the horizon and the old one is fading into oblivion. Crazy how year after year it seems that 365 days just whizzed by. I'll try to attempt to do a reminiscing of what transpired in 2014, but I know that I barely was conscious for the majority of the year. I felt like this year I was running on "auto mode".

Many of my "goals" for the year remained unfulfilled. I failed to even make a semblance of an attempt to reach some of them, pity on me.

My heart was full this year. Full of joy. Full of hope. Full of sadness. It was full of one emotion after another.

I reached a point in my life where I feel like my goal is within reach and yet for unknown reason or fear I am paralyzed to extend my arms to grab it. I need courage for 2015.

I need focus. I need compassion. I need tolerance. I need faith.

I want to reach my goals this new year.

I want to become more than I am now. I want to grow as an individual.

I no longer want status quo. I'm sick of status quo.

I want to be more open to new experiences. To stop saying NO and start saying YES.

I want to just go out in the world.

I want a deeper relationship with my family, with my friends and with God.

Lastly I want to learn how to use my freaking DSLR before I get a new one :)

Happy New Year y'all.

Three Weeks Later

It is three weeks since the last post and roughly 3 weeks since we got back from our vacation.

Lots of things got in the way. There were tons of tv binging. Catching up with the regular tv programs we follow took up a lot of time. Didn't realize that we watch so much tv, that we follow too many tv shows.

And because we were glued in to the tube, I have not completely tidied up my stuff from the vacation. I have yet to locate the earrings that I wore in Europe, minor issue for now.

Thanksgiving came and went. We don't normally do Thanksgiving as a family (my bros and I) so we do that separately. In the past few years we always do the traditional spread, well we try to keep it as true to the core as possible, and invite people who have no plans for Thanksgiving.

This year, a whole 16-lb turkey and all the fixings and there's just us and one friend who decided to share the day with us.

To add to the busyness of the season, hubby's birthday fell on Black Friday. We don't join in the shopping madness and if we ever are going to shop it would be either late Saturday or Sunday.

In the past we use Black Friday as a good day to go for a short drive and typically that drive leads to the wine country. We followed the same plan this year. However, much to our surprise we timed it with the annual Festival of Lights in Yountville. Unfortunately though we arrived late so much so that all the tasting tickets were sold out.

The single glass tastings however were still available so we had a beer for him and cider for me. We have been dying to have some sweets from Bouchon Bakery, but the line was tooooo long, naturally. As much as we hated to walk away from the line, we did. We wanted to catch a bit of the fading light so we could do our fall color photography. We managed to get a bit of shooting until twilight.

Still hankering for some sweets we found our way to one of our favorite stops in the valley, Dean and Deluca. While the sweets was what we came for, I fell in love with the onion and chives cheese that was out for sampling. Now I'm kicking myself for not buying a wedge of it. It truly was delish, very creamy.

On Saturday it was rainy and gloomy and we were driving to Yuba City to meet up people who could tell us about managing small business. That took longer than we expected and by the time we finished it was dark, no way that we could do any more shooting. We thought we'd talk to people then get out and drive to Grass Valley and shoot.

Plan B was to swing by Old Sacramento just to check if the Christmas lights are on. After all, it's been a few years since we were there. And another bonus to this side trip, they have Theater of Lights presentation. What a fun show for people of all ages. Of course it was cold and rainy, but didn't stop people from having fun. We saw a lot of kids (a few adults) wearing jammies, must be something going on that we didn't know about. After walking around, we stopped for a bite and a sip.

Sunday was shopping day and we mostly went to Costco for some necessities. Got a robe and hoodie for hubby and nada for moi. Oh and we were able to replace our tired but still working bedroom tv. I'm loving the new tv btw, plus it was on sale.

Right now I'm writing this with my two kitties cuddle up in bed with me. Take care.

6-month Review

A 6-month look back is not something I've done in the past. At least I don't think so, or don't remember. But I'm compelled to do one this time because I have had an unproductive blogging record here the first half of the year. Perhaps doing a recap or review would compensate for the lack of regular posts lately.

So the first half of the year went this way:

A Vegas road trip in January was what the doctor ordered. The long road trip was enjoyable for the most part, where I indulged in wool gathering while soaking up all the roadside sights. However, it was very long and eventually at some point I got bored and just wanted to get there. While in Vegas, we took day trips to Zion and Valley of Fire SP. All in all, it was an enjoyable break from the daily routine.

Got the scare of my life when my wallet went missing and I scampered to replace all the credit cards and driver's license, only to find the missing wallet in my car a few days later. The same car that was thoroughly searched, not once or twice, but four times.

Baby sat our friends' kids overnight as our gift for their wedding anniversary. The younger kid was so excited because we have the video game he liked and he's enamored with my cats, especially Buster who he kept begging the cat sleep with him.

I won a Coach bag from a blogger that I read religiously. The blog is based in the Philippines. It is my first brand name bag and probably the last.

Hosted bbq for friends on two different occasions.

For our 7th wedding anniversary we took a road trip to Lake Tahoe, Yosemite and on our day 3 we stayed at our friend's cabin near Yosemite, in Groveland.

Had a house guest from Bangladesh. He's visiting here in the USA with his group, they are stage actors and their theater group was invited (with 13 other countries) to a conference in Tampa. He invited us to see his play, but it would be cost prohibitive for both the hubs and I to travel so we asked if he had time to come stay with us for a few days. Luckily he had so we took him to do a lot of touristy things in San Fran and Monterey. I like being a tourist guide.

That's how my first half went. Although sadly I've done a lot of procrastination during this period. Likewise there's too many things going on that bogs me down, probably why I was unable to blog here too, because this blog make me write about my life unlike this blog where I only recount my trips and day trips or this blog where I write about my cats.

Looking ahead I hope that I'll be able to blog more. In addition, I have a big trip coming up in the fall that will tie me up in research about places to see, food to try, souvenirs to buy.

I was going to post this on Monday, but I got lazy.

As the heat(wave) was descending upon the valley by the bay this weekend , I was having another whinefest. It did not help that days prior I learned for the first time that we were having another cook-out with the neighbors on Sunday afternoon. Not that I don't like the neighbors. In fact I like them very much. They have been very welcoming when we first moved in 5 years ago and we have maintained a very good neighborly relationship since then. It's not even the entertaining and the things one needs to do before the said day - like cleaning the house for instance - for the record it's the fact that I wasn't even consulted. Yes, not consulted. I overheard the phone conversation between my husband and the neighbor about what they're bringing and what my husband is grilling.

My husband is wonderful but sometimes his timeline and time table don't coincide mine. Is it too much to ask for a quiet Sunday? The cook out turned out wonderful by the way. We ate slowly and savored every juicy bite of the chicken and the ribs and the sides and the chatter was continuous throughout the afternoon and evening. While that was really enjoyable, by the time the thing wrapped up it was nearly 8 pm. Yes I know there's plenty of light outside at that time still; however, my "chill" time on the weekend was considerably cut very very short.

The neighbors came after 3 pm. Before that I was at church having a meeting. I have probably mentioned once or twice that I am a member of the church "governing group" like a student body officer in school. Anyhow, it was one of those long quarterly meetings. One of the things that I took from that meeting was nothing to do with taking care of business at hand, but one of the sharings that happen before every meeting. Since yesterday was Pentecost Sunday and how the Holy Spirit inspires us, we were sharing our passions and inspirations to do what God calls us to do. I shared how this year I have been uninspired to do anything. I feel rushed, I feel burdened, burnt out. And so I have no inspiration to do anything. This by the way was seconded by a guy in the group, who felt that there's too many thing on the plates right now that taking on another thing is not doable. Cannot blame him, he got two kids under 13 years.

However what was inspiring to me was another lady who shared that while most of us are hellbent on helping other people (the needy, the hopeless, the homeless, the hungry), she doesn't care for all that. Her passion is calling her to help the birds. And so she volunteers to take care of birds.

I thought that's wonderful. I have a similar passion with cats, feral cats. Although unlike her my passion is limited to feeding those that frequent my backyard or those that once in a while find their way in my backyard. I hope I could do more and I vow to do more in the future.

Some random updates

How can I let this blog lay idle for three weeks? Was I that busy? That uninspired?

Anyway, some of the things that happen between the last post and today:

We had another bbq at home with friends from church. There were 12 people who came, 10 adults and 2 kids. We are getting so good at this, because at the end of the day there was only a little bit of food leftover. Usually we prepare way too much food for grilling and no matter how much people eat, we always end up with so much food to freeze. And I'm not one to enjoy eating leftovers from 6 months ago.

After months of toying with the idea of having girls night out, we finally did it. I organized a women's happy hour at Chevy's. Four of us gathered after work on a Friday and chatted our way through margaritas and chips and dips, quesadillas and tacos, chili rellenos and tamales. By 10:00 pm, my phone was ringing. The hubby was inquiring what's taking me so long. This was my first night out with the girls since I got married.....7 years ago!!!!

Speaking of 7 years, we celebrated our 7th wedding anniversary by taking a road trip to Lake Tahoe and Yosemite. Until this trip, I didn't realize that all I know of Lake Tahoe was the Southern part. This time we stayed in North Lake Tahoe and enjoyed the pleasant weather and blue skies. We stayed in a charming little cabin, watched sunset by the pier, walked the private beach, ate late dinner at a kitschy restaurant, grabbed snacks and beer at a local brewing company restaurant and drove around the lake stopping at different points. It was a wonderful vacation.

Two days in Lake Tahoe, then we retraced our 2008 road trip to scenic Highway 395. The difference this time we stopped at the south Mono Lake site where we saw the larger tufas, such a joy to see.

In addition, we took Tioga Pass to Yosemite. Compared to 2008 (we also visited on Memorial Day weekend)there was less snow on the mountaintops, which was quite disappointing but did not detract from the overall beauty of Yosemite. Took a day trip to Yosemite stopping at Toulumne River, Tuolumne Meadow, Olmstead Point, etc.

For the night we stayed at a friend's cabin in Groveland. They invited us to stay over so we can assess the cabin's rental worthiness. They are planning on putting it up for rental when they don't use it. According to them, they get plenty of usage, sometimes driving up there (3+ hours from bay area) 2 weekends a month. What we saw was more of a second home. It was set up as a home, not a cabin that is rarely used. It's big and the location is perfect, about 30 minutes from Yosemite. It has 2 br 2ba and a huge deck that is shaded by oak and pine trees. Deers roam around freely.

Lastly, I got to see the new X-men movie. I thought it was good, I enjoyed it fully.

So there, I think that's all that has happened since the last time I signed in here. Hopefully I will find something interesting to write about and share.

9 Days Later

9 days since the last post, my record at blogging this year is pathetic. Reason behind this sad fact is the busy offline life I'm having and of course a dose of laziness.

So the first week after getting back from vacation is always busy at work, because I'm always trying to catch up with workload that piled up while I was away.

Then I got lazy. Really lazy.

And we went out to eat with people. It seems that I'm eating out more this first 2 months of the year than I have the first 6 months of last year. Unbeknownst to me my husband made a date with his carpool buddies for dinner. The three of them brought their wives. I know one couple already since they came over for Thanksgiving at the house last year. When I met the other couple, I liked them immediately. We went to a Sichuan restaurant and ate spicy food, so spicy that it numbs the tongue and mouth. We had a fun time chatting and eating while the storm rages outside.

A week later

What a difference a week make, huh? Last post a week was telling how I was rushing to get all my cards replaced after I "lost" my wallet. Well, after that crazy Friday and the weekend, the rest of the week went by without the thought of the lost wallet crossing my mind, until about Thursday I believe when I realized that I had another bank card in the wallet. I knew that stressing about it that time was not productive so I just let it be. The account was the one I had when I was single, so there's hardly anything there. I just use it when I want to splurge on a cup of mochachino or something.

Anyway, the story about the lost wallet didn't end there. On Saturday, as we were leaving to go shopping, the hubby took the driver's seat, we were in my car. And the minute he opened the door the wallet was there. It was just there. On the side of the seat.

WE LOOKED throughout the whole car, on several occasions. The hubby LOOKED more than once and he's very thorough. So the only explanation left about the wallet is if it's hiding you won't find it until it's ready to show itself.

I let out a humongous laugh that went on for minutes it seemed. The sound of relief! Afterwards we spent the whole afternoon shopping. I finally got the piece that would complete my outfit for hubby's company's party in a couple of weeks.

And, we even got a good foot/neck/shoulder/back massage. What a great Saturday.

Now for Sunday.....

I've been teasing the husband about how he cannot do spontaneous. Trips are always planned way in advance, dining outs are well thought of and planned as well. So it was good to see that we began the year with a spontaneous trip to Pacific Grove, 2 hour's drive away. The Monarch butterfly sanctuary in Pacific Grove had some butterflies and are ready for sighting.

Up until yesterday, I had the impression that Monterey was about 4 hours drive. 2 hours drive is nothing on a day when everyone else seemed to be watching the hometown team, the 49ers on TV, so the roads were clear.

So we went to look at the butterflies, sipped organic coffee and ate yummy cookie at a coffee house cum bookstore, walked up and down the downtown area stopping at restaurant windows reading their menus, ended up taking rock fish quesadilla and thai spice wrap to go for a picnic on the waterfront where we were joined by birds and friendly squirrels while we chow down our delicious meal outdoors on a sunny day.

Then the spontaneity didn't end there. On the drive home, we stopped at Capitola, another fave spot, for a bit of sunset shooting.

What a gorgeous spontaneous day!

Twas a lovely weekend altogether.

This is how the cookie crumbled in 2013

So it's that time of the year again. As the door closes it's door on the old year; another door opens to welcome the new year. Thus, it's time to take note of how the cookie crumbled this year for me.

First sake tasting ever (will probably not repeat since I'm not fond of sake.)

Read The Alchemist by Paul Coelho, Saving Fish from Drowning by Amy Tan, the first 3 books of the Twilight Series

Seen with my own eyes the TERRACOTTA WARRIORS and THE GIRL WITH THE PEARL EARRING.

Spent anniversary weekend in Mendocino.

Camped with friends in Cabin 4 1/2 in the Sierras.

Visited Sequioa National Park.

Visited Mendocino Coast Botanical Garden.

Went for invitro fertilization (IVF) procedure in Mexico - was unsuccessful. Broke my heart and spirit.

Suffered from vertigo the first half of the year that almost disappeared in the second half - thank heavens!

Celebrated my birthday in Isla Mujeres, Mexico by touring the island and visiting the turtle sanctuary.

The Bay Bridge has a new eastern span.

First time to eat at an Indonesian restaurant.

Movies I've seen this year include: Oblivion, Taken 2, Solitary Man, Catching Fire, Before Midnight, White House Down, Gravity, Breaking Dawn 2, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Epic, Abduction, Argo, Silver Linings Playbook, Life of Pi, Magic Mike, The Hobbit: The Unexpected Journey.

I'll try to reflect on the highlights and low lights of this year and create a post later on.

Happy New Year!!!!

Heatwave, bbq, etc.

Last I was here posting is about a week ago. Here is a list of what's been happening around these parts:

***Had a heatwave that ran for a few days, nearly a week. It was really tough for us and the kitties too. Days like these are not too many where I live, but when they're here it just magnified the fact that the houses built in this neighborhood do not have airconditioning, and we need airconditioning. Yesterday, which the authorities on climate and weather say the hottest was actually the beginning of the cool down where I live. Of course the other areas of the Bay Area are slower in cooling down, at the same time more neighborhoods near the coast and the bay have cooled down earlier than us.

***Last Saturday mom gave me a pass. I was free to do as I please. She did not need my services to drive her to her errands for she already ran them with my brother the day before. And so free on Saturday morning? What to do? The hubby and I decided to go to brunch. We hardly have time to do brunch on the weekends because we're always busy, I'm busy with mom on Sat and it's church and other functions on Sunday. I wanted to go to Royal Cafe for some lipsmacking goodness of their scones and the lemon curd it comes with. However, the hubby did not want to drive that far, which I admit was a big turn off. Then I suggested we go to Suki's so I could have their pulled pork hash, which was really good the both times I had it. He, however, was always curious about Ember's, where the Men's Group of our church dines monthly. I went there a loooong time ago, over 10 years ago once and did not enjoy the experience. The hubster talked me into giving it another try since the last time I ate there was so long ago. They definitely had changed somehow right? So to Ember's we went. The place looked different, more airy and bright. I vaguely remember the old place I went to as very dark and crowded. The food was okay, nothing to get excited about. I had the corned beef hash and even though it's the canned variety, I enjoyed my dish. I was really craving for some hash. Also, I had some hash browns, which I can eat all by itself. The hubby had the Big Deal - an omelette with various meats and veggies and toast. He didn't finish his meal.

***Went to see WHITE HOUSE DOWN to flee the hots in the house. 2.5 hours of airconditioning and a movie sounds really perfect. What's more, the movie was really nice. I enjoyed the story, the acting and the actors. That Channing Tatum is surely a hunk. I'm starting to love him. The actor who played his daughter in the movie is equally a darling. Two thumbs up for White House Down.

***Our plum trees are full of fruits. We have our friends over for dinner and we asked if they could pick fruits for their weekly fruit allowance. I'm glad they did. I already picked two bagfuls of plums for my co-workers and the same for hubby's co-workers and still there's plenty left. The other plum tree is still waiting for its fruits to ripen. So blessed.

***Was supposed to go wine tasting over the weekend but has to postpone that. One of our friends was sick so we will just reschedule this.

***Got an invite to a bbq tomorrow, the 4th of July, over at the same friends who we were supposed to go wine tasting with. He's such a good cook so I cannot wait what he's going to grill. My hubs is bringing turkey kofta or something. We'll see.

Hah! That's all for now. In 2 week's time I have a camping trip with friends near Sequioa NP, so I'm getting really excited.

Still here

Memorial Day, the unoffical start of the summer season, had come and gone. Personally, I feel it's all downhill from here. The rest of the year would be gone before we know it. But it's a nice change to have a little more heat than we normally have. Although I'm pretty sure I'd be whiny when I can't get some sleep because it's too hot. Still summer is a time of creating happy memories. I have a camping trip in July at the same cabin we stayed at a few years ago with family. I'm going with friends this time around.

I took a short 3-day get-away this Memorial Day. We drove out on Monday, Memorial Day itself, happy that the traffic was all on the other side of the road. We stayed in Mendocino at the Mendocino Hotel courtesy of a Travelzoo voucher. I fell in love with Mendocino at first sight many years ago and vowed to return and stay at this historic hotel. I was a bit deflated when I was given my room number and was told that my room was on a separate location. It's actually just behind the hotel, they have two garden houses that double as garden suites. I have no complaints about my room, have been dreaming of staying in a Victorian room. The garden setting is likewise very charming - well all of Mendocino is charming.

We timed our arrival perfectly. The flowers are all blooming. Each house is decorated by blooming garden.

We didn't have a plan or a list of what to see, although we did research about them. Most of the eateries close at 8, some shops close earlier. We looked around for places to eat, but nothing attracted us. For one, we don't want to spend too much for meals. Not only were we conserving our pennies, we were also planning on avoiding ingesting too much calories on this trip. Thankfully we found a local grocery store (like Whole Foods) that has a good deli. We bought salads and Mexican food and Indian food from them. Their food is amazing. Plus, they don't give you a paper or plastic bag with your purchase. You have to make a separate purchase for bags. Then they give you a token (dime for a bag) signifying you bought a bag. The token is to be placed inside one of the four glass containers before leaving the store. Each glass container is for a local charity. What a nice gesture.

At a Vegan/Veggie store I found an ylang-ylang oil, which brought me home to the Phil just by smelling its fragrance. I wanted to buy one bottle, they come in small bottles, but it's way too expensive for me, it was $18.99 for a small bottle. Can't afford it.

This part of California is wet and foggy. We had rain for the first two days. Well, more of a drizzle on and off on the second day, but it was foggy. We went to see the Albion river, the Mendocino Botanical Garden, the Mendocino Headlands State Park and the Glass Beach. We stopped at stores to browse merchandise. Also stopped at a nursery to find the plant we wanted and found. It's called Tower of Jewel. We forgot to stop on the way home to buy it though, yikes.

The hotel didn't offer free continental breakfast, so we went looking for breakfast. On the second day, we went for brunch (yes we were on vacation so we got up late) at Eggheads, a local dive. Good food. We both had omelets. I was craving for hash browns, but they only have country potatoes. Not the same. So on the third day, despite all good sense, I dragged the hubby to Denny's for hash brown. It's the only one we could think of that has hash browns, so we forced ourselves to have some Denny's breakfast. Not that their food is bad, it's just not good. You know what I mean.

The rocky, rugged coastline, the charming Victorian houses, the plentiful wildflowers, the tall trees, the cold wind, the salty air, kelp all over the beach, the scenic Highway 1 - there's so much to enjoy in the north coast. I didn't realize that last year we were up here on the north coast again for our anniversary, except we went further north in Eureka as our base. It's just beautiful up there.

Especially when the sun comes out and the fog lifts and the sky is blue and the ocean is pretty shades of blue. Yes, it was like that on our third day, our last day.
We found ourselves singing the California state song while watching the waves crashed on the craggy bluffs..... I love you California, you're the greatest state of all.

This is just me talking.

We are just into the 5th month of the year and I'm already on my second bout of colds. Yap. It's not going to be a fun year, will it? Last year I was thinking out loud how I've managed to be colds-free for a number of years consecutively. I remember the last time I was in bed nursing a cold and fever - flu - it was the year 2000, yes it was that long ago.

This year, I already stayed in bed because I was too sick to get up due to colds - sore throat, cough, body aches, low-grade temps, chest and head congestion. I refuse to lie in bed this time around. So here I am. But to be honest, I feel horrible.

Change of subject to a more cheerful one. Our weekend was fun. On Saturday my mother freed me from my duties to drive her around while she runs errands, which she does on a weekly basis. She also runs errands with my brothers, but I have to drive her when it's my turn, which is Saturday. But this particular Saturday, she was a little under the weather, arthritis is acting up and walking is a pain in the ass, so she decided to sit it out.

As it turned out, last weekend was the first weekend of the month, which is when Bank of America sponsors free museum days. We've been wanting to infuse some fine arts and culture into our life once again, so we hightailed it to the city on that beautiful warm sunny day.

My bad because I didn't jot down the addresses of the museums we planned on visiting (Legion of Honor and De Young Museum). So when I put search Legion of Honor in my GPS, it took us to city college Legion of Honor. Who knew there were two Legion of Honors in the city. Turned out that the complete name of the museum is California Palace of the Legion of Honor. Whew! That's one long name to enter into the GPS. But we managed to find it and also find a parking spot. Truthfully though, without the help of the GPS, we know where it is and we know how to go there, we just want to see if the GPS can find us a quicker way to get there.

By the time we were entering the museum, the fog has arrived and overtook the neighborhood. Gone is the sunny warm upper 70s just an hour ago. We took cursory look at the exhibits, but it was the same things we saw before and artworks didn't keep us there. I didn't even entertained the thought that I might be taking pictures for the sake of a blog post.

What I was aching to photograph was the newlyweds having their photo shoot by the portico. I really really wanted to photograph them, but well I exercised supreme restraint on my part. I don't want to be rude and ruin their moment.

From here we drove to the Golden Gate Park where the De Young Museum is located. However, the park is closed off on weekends in some areas for sole use of pedestrians and bikers and rollerbladers, which meant we were to walk about 15-20 minutes from start of the road closure to get to the park. It was a good walk, but the wind by now had picked up and it carried with it cool breeze. Thankfully, I always leave a little jean jacket in my car for such emergency. My husband wasn't thinking ahead as I was.

At the De Young Museum, we only had one thing in mind. While the general admission was free courtesy of BofA, the special exhibits were not and we did not flinch when we paid the admission to see THE GIRL WITH THE PEARL EARRING and other collections that belong to Mauritshuis, the museum at the Hague. The collection is here while their home museum is being renovated.

The entire collection is amazing. Rembrandt and his co-horts paintings were incredible, but the centerpiece of the collection is the one called the DUTCH MONA LISA. It's really well made, beautiful. As a shortie, I managed to squeeze in and stand in the very front staring at it, and being in awe of the beauty of the painting.

I have a problem with paintings in general. Why do I have to stand there, look at the painting and think what the artist was thinking when he painted it, or what he was conveying. I do not like that.

This is why I like photography. If you look at a photographer's shot, you stand there, look at it and make your own interpretation of the photograph. That is why I prefer photos over paintings.

I simply don't have time and knowledge of the arts to fully comprehend the artist's interpretation of the piece. Having said that I spotted a Salvador Dali - I believe it was at the Legion of Honor - that I truly enjoyed.

We were cold and hungry by the time we reached the car, despite walking for 15-20 minutes. Then we remembered the little bakery/café we stumbled upon a few months ago in Balboa - the Cinderella Bakery and Café. The suddenly cold weather was asking for a bowl of hearty and piping hot solianka.

Again, we don't exactly know where it is in Balboa or what the nearest cross street is, and we plugged it in the GPS, found ourselves driving towards the water. Who knew Balboa is such a long street. I think its from one end of SF to the other end, which is the water.

Anyhoo, we found it, parked a couple of blocks away and found the place packed with hungry patrons. It's a very small place. Two tables inside with a little barstool/bar on one side plus a few tables on the curb. People were definitely enjoying their pickeled eel salad, which I was tempted to buy, but at $10 a tub, I wasn't ready to shell out that money for something I might not like. Perhaps I should have asked for a taste.

Since it was packed and we didn't want to sit outside and freeze to death (although there weren't any seats available), we got our soup to go along with a cup of hot coffee and a slice of cake and a cabbage piroshki.

That was Saturday.

Sunday was for church as usual. Also it was our massage day. It was my first time to have a massage with a guy, always have a female masseuse, but it was no big deal. He was good and the pressure he put on his fingers was just fine, although I was sore the next day.

We capped Sunday with a hearty home-made Mexican dinner of grilled chicken tacos and grilled chicken huaraches. BTW on Saturday before we visited the museums we made a stop at the Alemany Farmer's Market for a little lunch which consisted of a huarache. That's where the inspiration was to make huarache at home. The dinner was not complete without a margarita. It was Cinco de Mayo afterall.

What's been happening?

What's been happening?

Lately I've been feeling overwhelmed. It felt like I've got too many balls up in the air, and I could hardly juggle my way into it. However, I decided to step back and see the situation minus my emotions. It couldn't have been that hectic if I could still sit for a whole hour to watch my favorite tv show (well all of them at different times) or even unwind by playing computer games. I'm glad I took a little breather and stepped back so I could see things clearly.

The past several days I've been dreaming weird dreams. For 3 consecutive nights, I dreamed I was inserted in tv shows/movies. The characters were there and so was I. There was one night that I woke up exhausted because it was one of those slasher movies. I shy away from this type of movies, but I'm familiar with this one. The other 2 nights I dreamed my self was in two different tv shows from Syfy. Weird. And tiring. I really need good sleep.

Organized the first Bingo Night at church over the weekend, which was successful. I don't know when's the next one because Bingo is part of the Monthly Activity Program and Bingo would have to wait in rotation with Movie Night and Game Night.

On my to-do list:
• fix skirts by hemming in new ribbons (still need to buy ribbons at fabric store)
• get jewelry fixed. need my pearl necklace restrung. got two pearl necklaces that need this fix. may be I can do it.
• collect all dust-gathering fiction books in the house and donate them in the library. also must take all magazines to hospital/clinic waiting rooms.
• find an easy chocolate treat to make for our church's fundraiser in June called Chocolate Extravaganza.
• find new pet insurance.
• research about fix our ferals program and/or volunteer to the clinic.
• sign up for swimming lessons.

So far those are my to-do list. I've been travel free the first quarter of this year, which is pretty much the norm around here lately. I've got quite a project this year that might cramp my travel plans but while it's not travel vacation per se, the project requires I board a plane to Mexico, so it can be loosely defined as a travel as well.

Since I'll be mostly here in Northern California this year, I'm looking forward to:
• Lavender Festival in Santa Rosa
• Lavender Festival in Kenwood
• Eat Real Festival in Oakland
• Little get-away in the Central Coast, either Monterey area or Cambria/Morro Rock area.
• Little get-away in the North Coast preferably in Mendocino.
• Visiting Mt. Diablo State Park.
• More day trips to Sonoma and Napa Valleys.

When I lag behind writing posts here, I tend to consider shutting this down, despite the fact that I needed this to document what's been happening. I just really keep this going for me. If you read the posts, thanks. If you don't, that's fine too.

Year-End Report

2012 turned out to be one busy year, both in travels and in general.  Let's see how the year shaped up to be:

HIGH

• Travelled to India, Bangladesh, Mexico, Honduras and Belize.
• Ate and drank in New Orleans, what a beautiful city.
• Romantic get-away in the wine country in February.
• Enjoyed the giant sequioa trees and the charming Victorian houses in Eureka for our May roadtrip.
• Celebrated my birthday with my in-laws in Bangladesh - first time ever.
• Hiked and cave tubed in Belize.
• Drank the most wonderful tasting PINA COLADA of my life in the western end of Roatan in Honduras at the Half Moon Bay resort.
• Had a lovely dinner at Cafe Curbside.
• Baked my first successful brownie.
• Participated in outreach for the homeless in a project called Tenderloin Project where we collected essentials and packaged them in individual reusable pouches/bags.
• Took a 2-hour tour of Hongkong - which only whetted my appetite for the island country.  I wanna go back there.

LOW

• A loved one was diagnosed with the big C - she's doing well after the surgery where the doctor told her all the cancer cells are gone, but will still need to undergo more chemo.  Praying hard.
• Unable to unclutter my bedroom and garage.
• Failed to read books.
• Did not try to learn to knit.
• Unable to complete needle work project.
• Did not do much gardening or decorating.
• Did not go to Yosemite this year :(
• Zoom lens broke :(

GOALS:

• Complete cross stitch project.
• Learn how to sew and knit.
• Send out Christmas cards.
• Take a week off on Christmas to fully prepare for the day.
• Clean out the garage.
• Weed out my wardrobe.
• Read a book, seriously, any book not just my usual type of books.
• Find a way to make money out of my hobbies.
• Make candles.
• Make potpouri out of my lavender bushes.

I do not foresee many days of traveling in the coming year, athough there are 2 cruises that needed to be taken next year, both however are 7-day cruises each.  That only accounts for 14 days.  But who knows, 2012 wasn't a travel year in the beginning, but turned out to be one. 

The goals I set for myself this year are quite doable.  I bought a planner/journal on the weekend so I can jot down what needs to be done and what has been accomplished. 

Happy New Year.

2012 Survey

2009 Survey

2010 Survey

2011 Survey

In 2012:


Did you do something you would never do?

>>Rode an elephant. Cave tubing.



Did you keep any New Year's Resolutions?

>>I never make any so nothing to keep.



Did anyone close to you give birth?

>>No one.



Did anyone close to you die?

>> Yes, my friend's mom died. My other friend's bro died too. I don't know the ones who passed, but they are family to my friends. A lady from church Judy passed away. She even came to a football viewing in my house a month or so before her death.



Did you visit any countries?

>> Yes. India. Bangladesh. Hongkong. Mexico. Honduras. Belize



What would you like to have in 2012 that you lacked in 2011?

>>A child of my own.



Will any date from 2012 stay etched in your memory forever?

>>I can't think of any one particular date.



What was your biggest achievement of 2012?

>>I won a cruise from a raffle.



What was your biggest failure?

>>Lack of self discipline and lack of stick-to-itiveness when it comes to pursuing goals.



Did you suffer illness or injury?

>>Same old, same old.



What was the best thing you bought in 2012?

>>I didn't make a big purchase, so I cannot think of one.



Did your behaviour changed over the year?

>>I felt like I became more whiny, must change that.



Where did you spend most of your money?

>>Travels, bills and cat food and vet fees.



Are you happier than this time last year?

>>I should be.



What song will remind you of 2012?

>>Nothing comes to mind



What do you wish you would have done more of?

>> Diet and exercise. Crafting and reading.



What do you wish you would have done less of?

>>Whining.



What did/will you do for Christmas 2012?

>>Church and then visited a friend in the rehab facility.



Did you fall in love in 2012?

>>Yes, I fell in love with the Mughal architecture of India.



Did you get your heart broken in 2012?

>>Yes. The Newtown shooting broke my heart.



Favorite TV program of 2012?

>>Same shows each year with new ones like Revenge, Once Upon a Time, Scandal, Person of Interest.



Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?

>>Nope



What was the best book you read and/or movie you saw?

>>I really liked SKYFALL a lot.



What was your greatest discovery?

>>That New Orleans is such a fun city to visit, great food, marvelous architecture, pleasant weather, fun party city and very friendly to walkers.



What did you do on your birthday and how old were you?

>> Was in Bangladesh. My in-laws got me flowers and cake, friends came over with food, and hubby made pancit.



What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?

>>Having a baby.



How would you describe your personal fashion concept of 2012?

>>I don't have a fashion concept. Mostly frumpy.



FRIENDS:



Who was the best new person you met?

>>Monica is considered new because I only knew her one day prior to this year. This year we went on vacation for a week together so I got to know her better.



Who did you wish you did not meet?

>>No one.



Who was your bestfriend?

>>My husband



Who was your enemy?

>>Laziness and procrastination. Lack of focus and direction.



Who do you miss?

>>My girl friends from high school and college.



Who will you never forget?

>>The 2012 San Francisco Giants, the World Series champions.



Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2012.

>>Pray then pray some more.



What will you always remember about 2012?

>>Busy schedules, church meetings, church activities, church plannings. India and Bangladesh vacation.



ASPIRATIONS FOR 2013:



What do you want to do in 2012 that you couldn't in 2011?

>>Have a baby..



Any resolutions?

>>Walk, move, exercise. Craft. Read.



What is different about 2012 than 2011?

>>Lots of good things, I hope.



Anything you want to change about yourself for 2012?

>>Reinvent myself by adopting a new positive attitude towards life. Get involved with the community more.



Do you want to make more friends in 2012?

>>Absolutely!

Monday Ramblings

What is it about weekends that sap my energy and make me forget what I did when Monday comes calling? Such is the truth again today Monday as I tried to dig into my brain recesses for what transpired over the weekend, Saturday most specifically.

Sunday I know what I did. It was a busy day with church service and picnic with 3 other churches. This is our second annual picnic with the other 3 churches and the attendance was bigger this year. I took it as a good sign. Last week I was in total panic mode, because well, this is sorta our project. My husband and I are our church's representative to this coalition. So we were supposed to have a hand at everything minute detail of the picnic and service. Thankfully everything went smoothly.

I was amazed at all the wonderfully delicious and healthy salads that were brought by parishioners. We grilled hotdogs, but other than that people just brought salad. We brought our "famous" and often made couscous and three-bean salad. I really love this salad so easy to make and so yummy. Needless to say there were 3 or 4 other bean salads on the table, but each one is different so that was good. Of course there were different pasta dishes and the mandatory potato and macaroni salads.

Because I believed I ate healthy - not to mention skipping breakfast - I treated myself to a very small piece of strawberry cheesecake and an equally small piece of chocolate mocha cake.

The service was at 10 am and we have a webinar at 2 pm. Since it was our project, my hubby and I were in charge of cleaning up (which included hauling all the chairs from the park to the church - the church is across from the park btw). We joined other church officers for the webinar midway into the first hour. I was so tired from hauling the chairs. But I guess that was because I'm not in good shape. We were able to invite only one couple who doesn't belong to our church to join us for the picnic and they came, bringing a rice dish. It was the only rice dish so that was good. However, I had my hands full making sure that the children were occupied with games and the people were having food and enjoying themselves that I hardly had time to entertain them. We spoke on the phone when we got home that evening.

After the webinar, we have been toying with the idea of going out to eat. Sorta treat for each other. However, as I was getting really tired and I was looking forward to watching the baseball game (Dodgers vs Giants, Giants win yahoo!) I didn't pursue the plan. Hubby wasn't keen on going out to eat as well. We've been talking about eating out for the past week since I've been hankering for a little frozen mango margarita courtesy of Chevy's Happy Hour.

Anyway, we got home and fixed some food to eat. There were some left over salads from the picnic that one of the church members collected for me. I don't know why she thinks I should bring home the left overs (there wasn't too much anyway) but I was glad that she fixed me a plate while I was hauling the chairs back to the church. And instead of fixing myself a glass of margarita, I was sipping iced coffee from McDonalds. Not a bad combination.

Hubby suggested we complete the building of cat house, but I was too lazy to move and the baseball game just started. Who would have thought that I'd sit there for nine innings and watch the ballgame in its entirety. I thought my baseball game watching is a thing of the past. It appears like it's not. I thoroughly enjoyed the game, btw, of course who wouldn't when one's fave team is winning.

Well look at that I managed to ramble on and on again and my ramblings don't make sense. Don't mind me, I have a pounding headache and I'm just trying to get through Monday. Hope your Monday is going smoother than mine. Have a lovely week.

Lately...

In between catching up with work because of my time off and getting my body adjusted back to Pacific time these have been happening...

A friend vowed never to travel outside of our time zone again. He believes that after a certain age, the body is being punished for the constant change in time zones. I think he formulated this theory after we came back from our trip and complained how we suffered from jet lag the whole time we were in India and again a whole week after our return from Bangladesh. I'll have to wait and see if he keeps his vow.

My husband's wish for a day trip to Capitola became true this Labor Day. And what a perfect day to be there. The sun was out in full glory and the temperature was very mild. We even timed our visit to a Begonia Festival. Needless to say, with the combination of a Holiday, festival and wonderful weather the beach was jampacked with people. What a fun time for photo blogger and people watcher like me.

A whole month of Indian and Bangladeshi food got me into some serious food craving. Upon our return from vacation, we consciously cut down our food intake. Just salad and fruits for lunch, which we actually were doing before we went on vacation, and then a sensible dinner, which is less carb and fat. However, doing this has made me crave my Filipino dishes all the more. Last week I had some serious hankering for adobo. Nope did not indulge my craving. This week I'm thinking about grilled or fried fish with steamed rice and tomato/mango salsa. I have to go back to the Philippines to completely savor these flavors.

Finally got to see BOURNE LEGACY. Wanted to see this because I like the Bourne series and also because it was shot in the Philippines. Was a little disappointed that the part they chose to show the Philippines wasn't the part or parts I wanted to see. Plus the chase scene I thought was way too long. But shout out to Lou Veloso, I thought he was memorable in his bit part. In addition, I would have wanted to see more of Palawan too. But I thought the movie was good, Jeremy Renner was good, he's actually rubbing me the right way, and my husband and I both love Rachel Weisz since the first time we saw her. The story is okay too.

A Quiet Weekend

Who would have thought that I'd have one? I was doubting that the quiet weekend would never come, but it did last weekend and I'm just telling this today. I had a meeting after work last night, which made it impossible to catch up on my blogging.

Despite the weekend coinciding with the Cinco de Mayo celebrations, it was quiet. We went to check out if there are any festivities related to the holiday out in Richmond (they have annual parade), but apparently we drove out there late and the set-up looks like it's being torn down. Not to go home without a taste of South of the Border, we thought it best time to check out Las Montanas, a grocery story, which I'm guessing is a chain store, since we frequent the one in neighboring Concord. But this new location is much closer to us, yay!

Well, because of the holiday, the people working there were garbed in traditional Mexican clothing. The store was very festive and crowded. On entry at the left side is a cafeteria style set-up. We looked at the menu and thought we'd have a little giant shrimp ceviche and pupusas. I know, I know, pupusas isn't Mexican food, but I always love to eat them. They're just wonderful. I might try my hand at making them, since this store sells masa.

Anyway, there is a little sitting/dining area off the cafeteria and we gulped our horchata and the rest of the food with so much gusto. Boy the food was really delicious.

Well, I'd be sure to keep coming back here for the food. I also noted they have very reasonable pricing for combo/party platter packs. I was telling my husband how I'd love to have a taco party someday and this place solves all my problem :)

BTW, my mom and I bumped into a neighbor of ours, who also happened to be my 3rd grade teacher at Chow King on our weekly Saturday brunch there. We chatted for a while and agreed to meet at my house someday. I hope this materializes because it's really nice to see people you've known since you were a kid.

Still working, thank God. Still busy at church, thank God. Still watching all my tv shows, which hubby says the number of which grows every year. True, but they're all very interesting.

Nothing on the big screen captures my fancy so I'm not watching any lately. Busy mapping out a short get-away for our wedding anniversary at the end of the month. And our trip to India is almost set. I'm also excited to be back to Bangladesh.

How would this coming weekend fare? I only get a quiet weekend rarely, so I bet it's not going to be quiet this time around.