SULIT! =D

I've said goodbye to Andok's and Baliwag forever.

I've met Sr. Pedro. =D No. 1 in Visayas & Mindanao. Once tasted, always wanted! Naks! Haha! =D

I've passed by the roadside stall on our way home to House Better countless times, and have always ignored it. In House Better, when Mother is too tired to cook (or when we visit House Better unannounced), she'd always ask us to go buy BBQ or lechon manok. Andok's has always been the default.

Then, one time, the Hubby and I decided to make a side-trip to House Better (we were coming home from Lago, I think), and struggling with a craving to try something new, I asked him to drive past the usual so we can try the Manok ni San Pedro. Haha. Yes, I remember actually saying that. Throw-back to the Lito-Pimentel era back in the 80's. Susko! Haha. =D

To be honest, it's not the first time I've come across Sr. Pedro. It has been oft-mentioned as a driver for the sudden sales growth of an all-natural product (for proprietary purposes, I will not reveal it here =)) in VisMin in past business reviews. The Food Service group would always talk about this lechon manok upstart that grew into the "Andok's of Visayas and Mindanao" kaya drum-drum sila kung bumili.

Anyway! Did I digress? =D

From the outside, it looks just like any other lechon manok stall.

Rotating chicken and liempo.

Two guys manning the stall. One to check on the cooking chicken; the other to chop.

The difference ends there.

First, when you buy from Sr.Pedro, don't feel shortchanged if you DON'T get your liver-based lechon sauce. The Bisaya have never been fond of it. Instead, you will get a mixed concoction of what I suspect to be soy sauce, sinamak and calamansi.

The lechon sauce is not necessary anyway. Once you bite into it, you will taste the difference. See, years of handling the biggest and most popular cooking club in the country (;p) has taught me that the said all-natural product can do wonders for meat. Not only does it make it more tasty (nanunuot, I believe, is the term our lolas would use), said all-natural product actually has enzymes that act as meat tenderizers when used as part of the marinade. Ang Lechon Manok ni Sr. Pedro is, therefore, more than just delicious, it's malinamnam. =D

In these recession-ridden times, the only thing that's even better than its taste is its price! While Andok now retails for P220+ per chicken, Sr. Pedro retails for only P175 per! WOOHOOOOOO!!! It wouldn't have ended up being #1 in VisMin if it weren't this sulit. =D


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Ang Lechon Manok ni Sr. Pedro is now all over the metro. Unfortunately, they're usually located in places with high pedestrian traffic, but very limited parking space. =( The Better LIving stall is actually one of the few that I've come across with parking space. For those who live near the area, it's near the intersection of Dona Soledad and France. =)

KALOKOHAN! =(

With Hubby Sweet on the health bandwagon lately (as I desperately try to tag along), I suggested that we eat at the new Kenny's Roast & Grill. I had passed by Kenny's often enough everytime we go to Rockwell (our fave mall), but have admittedly never eaten there because I usually reserve it for when we go to the more, uh, mass-based malls. In Rockwell, there are better restaurants to eat in.

All those gigantic billboards on Edsa must have done a superb job (it's either that or the end-of-the-month-set-allowance-dwindling-kind-of-thing that did me in). "Sweet, let's eat na lang at Kenny's." The Hubby agreed.

Now, for the record, I thought they just renovated. New look. Same old Kenny's. The fact that the server directed us to a table was the first sign that something was up. At Kenny's, you line up for your quarter chicken and watch as two sidings of your choice get slopped onto your plate. Hmmmnnnn.....lightbulb moment. Oh! So Kenny's Roast & Grill is going to be like the Pizza Hut Cafes all over HK. Kenny's, but slightly more sosy. O, sya. =)

We moved to a table. The server advised us that if we order plates from a certain section, we can also enjoy the soup and salad buffet. OK. The Hubby and I ordered two different chicken dishes.

The salad buffet layout itself was impressive.

Fresh greens.

An assortment of other veggie toppings on a bed of ice.

Potato salad, pasta, chicken strips, crumbled egg.

Ham, nuts, cheese.


An assortment of dressings.

This is how my salad ended up. Because I thought, "Sya, lubusin na ang health ek," I decided to go for the Honey Balsamic Vinaigrette instead of the Ceasar Salad dressing.


Mukha lang siyang masaya, pero HINDI siya masarap! WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!! All the ingredients were seasoned on the bland side. Heck, even the vinaigrette was bitin. It was not sweet enough. Neither was it sour enough. I was so disappointed, I couldn't find the strength to go for seconds. Bah. =(

The soup (Chicken Vegetable supposedly), was nothing great either. Just clear soup with a few bits of veggies. Even I could have cooked this one. Susko! =(

Finally, my chicken arrived. I ordered the Classic, thinking one can never go wrong with Kenny Roger's classic chicken. Quarter chicken. Ngweh. Does this look like a quarter chicken to you? Quarter of a very small chicken. Waaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh!!!

So maybe it was plated for portion-control purposes. Maybe I did not get the concept. I suppose there was a disconnect with my extreme satisfaction with Kenny Roger's Roasters, and this, its upper-crust sibling. It's like looking forward to having dinner with the family of a jolly, good friend, only to realize that the rest of the family is uptight and bland as a soaked carton. Ack!

We really wanted to get out already and put this sad, sorry experience behind us so we asked for the bill.

P700 almost!

Yun ang pinakamalaking kalokohan! Grrrrr.....

For that amount, kahit isama ang desserts, di pa din sulit. =(

And, yes, these, you would have to pay for separately.



Hay! =(

I SO DID NOT ANTICIPATE THIS PROBLEM...=D

Hay, naku! When Hubby Sweet and I first decided to get a pup, I had my heart set on getting a male one. I had females growing up, and while I loved all of them like they were my kids, I told myself that, this time, I did not want the hassle of having to wipe droplets of blood off everything. I also did not want to live through the hassle of having to "protect" her from every single, male dog that seems to be waiting for her right outside the door when she's in heat.

And so it goes that Buster J is Buster J because we really set out to look for a male mini-schnauzer.

When it came to buying a second pup to keep Buster J company, instead of buying a female mini-schnauzer, I convinced the Hubby to buy another male dog instead. They'll be barkadas. They'll be brothers. Hay!

The plan worked for a while. AND THEN, they turned one. Hala! From then on, I suppose the hormones kicked in and they haven't stopped raging since! Santa Barbara....=D

Anyway! I have since found out that because I purposely rid myself of the hassle of female dogs in heat, I inadvertently brought upon myself the hassle of having to live with two male dogs who are constantly trying to hump each other. HAHAHA! Santa Barbara....=)

So, anyway! I feel like I'm a mom in search of a prom date for her kid. Hahaha! In any case, I'm seriously looking for a girlfriend for each of them. Leave a note in the comments section if you think there's potential for love (I'd settle for lust ;p) between your pup and mine. =)

This is Buster J. He's a mini-schnauzer. When we first bought him, Hubby Sweet wanted to have his ear cropped, but I got awa so I put my foot down and said no. So the fact that he has ears the size of radars today is my fault. Haha. (Maybe it's also the angle from which I shot him. I couldn't take a "level" pic because everytime I sit down, he rushes to lick my face. Hay....=D)

This is how he looks like from the side. Guwapo! Naks! Haha. =D

This is Barrioca. He is a wire-fox terrier. I think I'd have an easier time finding a mate for Buster J because wire-fox terriers are still relatively rare around these parts. In any case, here's hoping some of you know someone who owns one! =D (BTW, please ignore his tail. It usually looks like a bottle brush, but when we brought him for grooming last Saturday, the groomer wasn't too familiar with wire-fox terriers, so the Hubby had to guide him through it. Kaso, the Hubby got distracted for a while and looked away. When he looked back, hala! The groomer sheared all the wire-hair off Barrioca's tail na! HALA! Haha! Di bale. We're hoping it will grow back. FAST. =D)

And this is how Barrioca looks like from the side. =D

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Leave a note in the comments section if you're interested. Thanks! =D

MELTING POINT =(

For all those who regularly follow my blog, you'd know these two. The pic was taken by Mama Mi, my cousin-in-law, two Christmases ago. Genius Patita and Adorable Ray*-B. I keep thinking and I can't shake it out of my head: if the summers are already this punishing for our generation (really, 37-39 degrees?!), how much worse would it be when they get to our age?

Just last week, I was in Cagayan de Oro for work. I've been in and out of the place over the past 14 years. I've never experienced rain that hard, it flooded parts of the city. (Heck, the area was actually handpicked in the 1920s because it had the perfect balance of sunshine and rain, needed for growing pineapples. More sunshine. Less rain. It isn't the case anymore.) Last Friday, there was heavy rain AND thunderstorm. At 3:30 p.m. In the middle of summer. The rain got so bad, I was told flights were cancelled, so other colleagues who were supposed to fly back to Manila that afternoon had to turn back.

Last year, I got hold of a copy of The Inconvenient Truth and sat through it, amazed. Sadly, it all stayed at the "mental level". I know the planet is in trouble, but it's the classic case of the chicken-or-the-egg. The planet is heating up. So I turn on the aircon to cool myself down. Which only contributes further to the heat. So I keep the aircon on longer to keep myself comfortable. Which only contributes further to the heat. The cycle goes on and goes on--at least, until I create a discontinuity that would change its course.

Hubby Sweet actually started this thing. Choosing to eat organic (rice, egg, and what else have you), he told me that he read somewhere that they create less stress on the environment. "Think of it, Sweet," he said, "Pa'no na lang sina Patita, Ray-B*, Siob-siob, GB and Kirstie if we don't do something about things now?" And so SLOWLY (even if it's a bit more expensive), we're choosing to go the organic route.

Tomorrow, I'm also buying an electric fan so we confine the use of the aircon to when it's REALLY needed. (Yes, the only fan I have in the house is an industrial fan, and sadly, in one moment of boredom, Buster J and Barrioca gnawed at the plug. Ack! Buti na lang di nakasaksak. Haha!)

Which brings me to my next course of action. I'm going to start unplugging stuff when they are not in use. I'm going to start putting off lights. It does not make sense to have the light on in the kitchen and the hallway, when really, all of us are in the living room. It's quite simple when you think about it, but it's not easy. We (meaning Hubby Sweet and I) have to start building a habit.

I'm slowly starting to recycle. Who cares if it's not sosyal to reuse PET bottles and instant noodle cups? Haha. We have to learn to segregate what is biodegradable and what is not. The biodegradable stuff, we can bring to a composting organization. The non-biodegradable stuff need to either be used twice or donated to some recycling center. Seriously, if you know any organization who accepts biodegradable garbage for composting and non-biodegradable garbage for recycling, please leave a note in the comments section.

I want to plant a tree. They say, you have to be able to plant a tree in your lifetime. I just don't know where yet. I've planted coffee in Tagaytay with BFF Marts in one of those planting tours organized by Figaro in Tagaytay during the Wander Years. But coffee beans are not trees, and I want to plant trees. I want to get a group together so we can start figuring out how to do this. Soon. Anybody else up for planting trees?

I feel the panic building inside me, not for myself, but for the little children I love who will grow up in a world much, much worse than the one I am living in now--unless I do my bit to change the course we're on. This is Siob-siob, my youngest niece. She's only 3 months old.

When you think about people who would have to live on this earth 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 years down the road, whose face do you see?

More importantly, what are you going to do for them today?

SUSAN BOYLE ON BRITAIN'S GOT TALENT =D

Just when I thought no one else on You Tube could make me cry as much as Paul Potts did, along came Susan Boyle. Ano ba! What is it with these Brits?! =)

I Dreamed a Dream is one of my all-time favorite songs from a musicale. I think more than it being a piece, she was literally singing about her life. Made it all the more touching (at least for me =)).

I'm happy (again! =)) for one more underdog who dreamed the dream, against all odds, to finally see it come true.

WOOHOOOOOO!!!! =D

P.S. - Is it just me or did Simon look like he was on the verge of a major crush? HAHAHA! =D

ANG HULING EL BIMBO / MARCH 7,2009 =D

And so the final salute has been given. As four men stood on stage, their arms around each others' shoulders in the closest version of the group hug the audience has been clamoring for over the course of two reunion concerts, I couldn't help but be torn between tearing up over the idea that this will not happen again anytime soon, and smiling from ear to ear at the consolation playing over and over in my head--that I was at least there when it all ended.

Hubby Sweet, myself, G-Genius and Sister Pusjing were all there in the VIP section for The Final Set as part of the Hubby's birthday celebration. Truth be told though, even without anything official to celebrate, we would have been there standing shoulder to shoulder with 100,000 who braved vehicular and pedestrian traffic to join the countdown from Z to the inverted E, to be part of Philippine music history. Literally the only way to breathe fresh air within the concert grounds is to turn your nose up and jump up and down.


Not counting the 3 extra songs that Ely, Raimund, Marcus and Buddy jammed to after the sticker-happy-piano has been burned and smashed, after the confetti has been released to rain on the crowd, after the fireworks lit up the MOA midnight sky, after the stage lights have gone dim, and after the crew have started to dismantle the stage, the official last song of the Eraserhead's Final Set was as apt not just because it was among their most popular song, but because it talked about a love affair that started from laidback afternoons of nonsense only to blossom into a serious lifelong love affair without anyone noticing--until it hit them squarely in the face.

As we walked out of the concert venue, we couldn't help but laugh, reminiscing about one of Sister Pusjing's ex-officemate who was an ex-dormmate of the E-Heads in U.P. In one of those OA overtimes, typing away at their computer keyboards, preparing for a major presentation, her ex-officemate blurted out, referring to his now-very-famous-ex-dormmates, "Nung araw, iniisip ko, 'Wala kayong ginawa kundi kumanta at mag-gitara! Hay, wala kayong mararating!' Ayan, mayaman na sila, ako hanggang ngayon, overtime pay lang ang nahihita sa pagt-trabaho hanggang madaling araw." HAHAHAHAHA!

Then again, they did more than just that. The Eraserheads gave a voice to an entire generation. They celebrated their triumphs through song. Reveled in their angst. Sang about their pain.


Magkahawak ang ating kamay
At walang kamalay-malay
Na tinuruan mo ang puso ko
Na umibig ng tunay......

And just like that, without any of them really meaning to, they made an entire generation fall in love with them.

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For those of you who missed it (and those of you who want to relive it), The Final Set airs tonight @ 10:30 p.m.on GMA. =)