MY DAY!!! =) / JANUARY 6,2008

Birthdays have always been considered a big deal at my parents' house. Growing up, Mother made sure that everyone understood that if it is someone’s birthday, it is HIS or HER day. There will be no other diva on that day; the celebrant has exclusive rights. Hahaha.

If one’s birthday falls on a weekday, it means everyone would have to wake up extra-early (like 5:00 a.m.!) so people can have enough time to enjoy a special breakfast (complete with the opening-of-gifts-ceremony!) before everyone rushes off to start their day. Everyone, that is, except Father who would typically go back to sleep, not used to waking up before 7:00 a.m. Haha!

If one’s birthday falls on a weekend, it means everybody is mandated to wake up as soon as the birthday celebrant does. If the birthday celebrant decides to sleep in, Mother makes sure nobody eats before the celebrant comes down for breakfast. That said, everybody either suffers in silence, their tummies grumbling until Mr. or Ms. Special Day decides to roll-out of bed OR everybody creates the biggest ruckus in the world to force the celebrant to wake up. This, however, is usually disguised in the form of a “greeting” with everyone barreling through the bedroom door, shouting at the top of their lungs, “HAAAAAAAPPPPPPPYYYYYYYY BIRTHDAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!! WAAAAAAAAKKKKKE UUUUUUUUUPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP!!!!!!!!!!” HAHAHA! ‘D



Truth be told, such extreme measures are usually employed only on Father, haha, as all of us kids have been trained by Mother to wake up early during weekdays and by the Saturday Fun Machine during weekends. Haha! =)

I remember getting all excited every time my birthday rolled along. I know I would wake up to the smell of breakfast cooking (as my bedroom window sits right across the dirty kitchen). I know I would have my favorite breakfast laid on the table, and I know I would have ice-cold peaches for dessert. (Yes, in House Better, peaches for dessert is a clear signal that something special is happening that day! Haha. =)) I also know I would tiptoe down to find boxes and boxes of beautifully-wrapped gifts set next to my breakfast plate. There are very few things in life that can brighten up my early morning as much as a mountain of gifts meant only for me. =) Yey!

My birthday this year fell on a Sunday. Sunday, being the typical clan lunch-day on Father’s side, I decided to celebrate my birthday at Eduardo’s (the ancestral home named after my lolo =)). I had volunteered to bring in Thai Food—straight from Som’s (as I cannot cook decently enough to save my life, haha). Panety (our tita) would hear none of it! She had already planned the menu for the day. I can bring the lechon that I volunteered to bring, and she will take care of the rest. The rest, I found out much later, involved Pasta (Yum!), Paella (Yum, yum!) steamed sea bass (Yum! Yum! Yum!) and baked oysters! (Heaven!!!). YUM! ^_^ With all the plans in place and the errands that needed to be run, however, I decided to break tradition and not go home to House Better this year. I texted Mother and Father, I would just meet up with them at Eduardo’s. I rationalized that Hubby Sweet and I would just have to manage to create a birthday celebration/tradition on our own. =)

The eve went by uneventful enough. As it has been since the time I met Hubby Sweet, I would inevitably get a greeting in one form or another at the stroke of midnight. Being married has not changed that, except that this time, my half-asleep husband roused himself as best he could, hugged me tight, planted a kiss and mumbled a barely audible and very slurry, “Haberdaytweet,” before almost instantly snoring himself back to oblivion. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! ‘D Not that I minded. I was actually sleeping myself, and was only briefly roused by this midnight mini-commotion. Man! We are sooooooooo married. Haha! ‘D

In any case, the day itself started pretty uneventfully. “Good morning, Tweet,” Hubby Sweet whispered, “Happy Birthday…” With one blurry eye opened, I whispered back, “Thanks, Sweetie…Can we eat out for breakfast?” HAHA! ‘D
And so it goes that we found ourselves @ Gram's Diner in Rockwell which is like 10 minutes from our place on any given Sunday.

I thought it was my birthday so I decided to have something I normally wouldn't have at home. Steak and eggs it is, then! With coffee, of course. =) Hubby Sweet opted for the corned beef with hot choco. =) I've been to Gram's several times before (back in its old location though). It was your comfort-food-kind-of-diner.

The food was not bad, but it was nothing spectacular. Well, except for the corned beef which was apparently sooooo good, Hubby Sweet just had to ask the waiter what brand it was. =) Oh, and the hot choco was apparently good too. Sooooooo good, Hubby Sweet also had to ask what brand it was. Lech. Mas masarap yung breakfast niya kesa sa'kin. Haha. =)

Still, the morning ambience more than made up for it, especially when you consider that we were right smack in the middle of Metro Manila! =) Nothing much beats eating breakfast al fresco on a chilly January morning as Japanese kois swim about you. ^_^


Later that day, we had a spectacular lunch @ Eduardo's (as detailed in an earlier paragraph) and capped off Panet's menu with brewed coffee and my current favorite cake, Frozen Brazo de Mercedes by Ange! Let me put it on record that I am NOT a Brazo de Mercedes fan. I actually loathe it, thinking it is no more than a beautified version of egg with higher calories and cholesterol. Well....*sheepish grin =D*...come to think of it, it actually is. The moment I tasted Ange's at an office function, however....well, it's something else! I suppose it's the ice cream that makes all the difference. Or the fact that the "yema" is not too sweet. Or the fact that the soft merengue was just right, not too dense, but not too airy. Basta! All of them put together makes for one delicious dessert. Diets and diabetes be damned, I decided it was going to be my birthday cake for 2008! Haha. Yum. YUM! ^_^

Apparently, everyone thought so too since practically everyone had second servings, all raving the entire time. The Hubby probably had twice as much serving as the next person who had the most! Then again, HE is a traditional Brazo fan. If he liked the traditional variety, how much more this?! The frozen brazo was polished off in no time at all. =D

The following day, I extended my celebration a bit when I got to the office and excitedly opened the special edition coffee that Hubby Sweet gave me. It had such a beautiful box, I was almost sorry to open it. Part of Starbucks' Black Apron Exclusive Line*, Lomas Al Rio (of Costa Rica) is supposedly the perfect Central American breakfast coffee. The blurb on the back read that it is "sparkly with sweet floral notes reminiscent of orange blooms...". Isn't that such a romantic way to describe coffee?! =D I brewed 3 cups (= one gigantic mug, =)) in my trusty 5-cup mini-coffeemaker and savored the smell of this special coffee wafting through the air. Although I did not imagine myself "watching the sun rise over the mountains amidst the noisy piapia calls of brown jays in gaurumo trees" (as it said in the pack panel blurb, haha), I did savor every sip! I almost wished I did know how it is to watch the sun rise over Central American mountains, how brown jays sounded like, and what gaurumo trees exactly are. If I did, it would have been easy to transport myself to some exotic location--if only in my mind. =D

All in all, it wasn't a bad way to turn 37. (WAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!! Hahaha! 'D)

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* The Starbucks Black Apron Exclusive line is a collection of "rare, exotic and cherished coffee". Starbucks buys and and sells this line of coffee at a premium. Proceeds supposedly go to a "tribute fund" from which cash awards for the small farmers and funding for projects within their communities are derived. The primary objective is to encourage small farmers to continue growing their country's traditional coffee despite pressures to grow only the commercially-viable varieties that manufacturers turn into, que horror (!), instant coffee. It is their hope that the program will ensure the survival and long-term sustainability of each variety included in the line, as well as protect the biodiversity within the environments in which these types of coffees are grown. Coffee has grown a conscience and you can sip it in every cup! =)



* On the other hand, if you want to try Ange's Frozen Brazo de Mercedes, just go through the San Lorenzo Amorsolo gate (the one near Don Bosco). The guards usually just let you pass if you tell them you're buying cake from Ange (unless you're suspicious-looking and you look like you're about to rob someone in the neighborhood, haha 'D). Just go straight along that road until you hit house # 75. It's the pink house on your left. Just ring the bell. The frozen brazo is usually available; no need to pre-order (except, I suppose, during peak season). It comes in two sizes. The small pan (4"x8") goes for P300; the big one (7"x11") goes for P500. Methinks the big one is more sulit but get it only if you have a ton of people coming over (I exagerrate, of course =)) OR if you have a big enough freezer to store it in. =)

V-DATE! =) / FEBRUARY 14,2008

An officemate asked me yesterday if I was the type who would make a big deal out of Valentine's. 'Got me thinking. Uh.......NO. Hahaha! 'D

The question, however, made me realize that during My Wander Years (haha), I only made a big deal out of V-Day whenever I'm single & unattached, during which all my other single friends and I would literally band together and celebrate...uh...friendship (haha! 'D) or whenever I'm single-but-being-pursued (in which case, I will either go out if I liked the guy OR hide and pretend that I'm sick just to avoid being seen with someone I don't particularly fancy on THE day-of-all-days! Hahaha! 'D

Being in a relationship this and the succeeding V-Days for the rest of my life (Naks! Haha. =)), yesterday was officially a No-Date-Day for Hubby Sweet and me. I left the office early, but only because I did not want to run into the expectedly horrendous traffic on Boni High Street and Serendra. It was a marked difference, considering that I usually go home 7:00 p.m. at the earliest. Yesterday, I apparently got home too early. Haha! 'D

Expecting me to be home no earlier than 7:30 p.m., I opened the door a little after six to find the Hubby frantically taking off the "cups" from the roses that seem to have just been delivered. I walked down the hall to find a kitchen in total disarray. All the burners on the stove were lit. Soup was bubbling in one corner, even as the store-bought gravy was simmering in the mini-casserole. Mushrooms and garlic were sauteing in one pan (filling the air with the delicious garlic smell that I love), even as the grill-pan was being prepared to be heated on the big fire. On the counter laid four rib-eye steaks, surrounded by a bottle of olive oil, a set of salt & pepper shakers, a can of canned corn kernels and margarine. At his desk, the laptop was on-line, playing a video: How to Prepare and Enjoy Your Rib-Eye Steak.

I had walked into the makings of an in-home V-Date! Haha! Wow. =D

The pics may not look like much and would never stack up against all the other food-styled steaks @ Prince Albert or Highlands Steakhouse. Still, I don't think anyone will argue with me that these rib-eyes are among the most priceless I have ever tasted--notwithstanding the fact that they were served in mismatched plates, cut with mismatched utensils, and notwithstanding the fact that the side dishes were served in different-sized microwaveable containers. Haha! 'D

Happy V-Day, Sweetie!

I love you. =)

MWAH! '*

OUR PERFECT IMPERFECT WEDDING: PART 5 / JULY 15,2006

Happy Valentine's Day! Hahaha! Man, I ought to be shot. =) I received mail from Angel AAze the other day complaining that I haven't been updating my blog. (I have a fan! Yey! Haha. =)) Truth is, my computer (or server) has been on the blink lately. I can't access B! Hmp. Today, apparently, is my lucky day. =)

After reading through my blog--and passing by my blog on Bu & G--I went on a sentimental trip and re-read my blogs about our own wedding. I then realized I forgot to post the last in my-own-wedding series! Haha! (It is, BTW, a repost from my now-defunct Friendster blog. =)) If you want to read Parts 1-4 (for whatever reason, haha), just go to the Sweety & Tweety Milestones folder. =)

Here goes......=)



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The rest of the ceremony went smoothly. Surprisingly, the church wasn't as hot as I thought it would be. If there's anything that my church coordinators got right, it was at least remembering to have a fan directed at us during the entire ceremony. I remember The Hubby & I having a discussion about it. While I also loved the Nuestra Senora, I dreaded the idea of having to go through the entire ceremony wearing a full gown in it. I was concerned that I would end up fainting from heat exhaustion. My cousin got married in the same church. I thought I'd die from the heat at that time--and I was wearing a backless top back then!


Flashback to August 2005 when Hubby S & I were going around Metro Manila, trying to look for the "perfect venues", matching churches with possible reception places. At that time, we still had the illusion that we could keep the entire budget below P250 thousand. HAHAHAHAHA!!! Yeah, right! We rid ourselves of that delusion soon enough. Hehe. Sanctuario de San Antonio was on the list, but it was a nominal one. Being non-parishioners, we would not be allowed to hold our wedding during weekends. Weekends, apparently, were reserved only for the jetset crowd. We were adamant about a Saturday wedding though--to give family and friends every single chance to attend both the ceremony and the reception. We also wanted an afternoon ceremony so dinner won't be too late. Sanctuario de San Antonio was therefore--for all intents and purposes--out. I was all for a Sanctuario San Jose / Edsa Shangri-La match-up. San Jose was simple, but it was airconditioned. Edsa Shang would always be special; it was where The Hubby & I first met up. He wanted us to visit the churches together though before finalizing our choice. One Saturday was reserved for "church-hunting".


Being in the vicinity (although I don't remember anymore why we were in the vicinity), we decided to take a peek at the church in the reclamation area (I forgot what its name was), but decided against it. Mapped against the bay horizon standing seemingly in the middle of nowhere on that particular misty Saturday morning, it looked--for lack of a better word--lonely. The Manila Cathedral and San Agustin were never considered. Their popularity had worked against them because I did not relish the idea of having to rush through my ceremony because another couple was already waiting in the wings for their turn. We briefly toyed around with the idea of getting married at the Malate Church (where my parents got married), but quickly decided against it after flashbacks of the horrendous Saturday traffic in the vicinity. We drove to San Jose in Greenhills next. A wedding was on-going. Perfect, I thought. Kiko was only half-convinced. He did not particularly like the idea of getting married in a church inside an exclusive village. I stifled my protest, choosing to remember instead that it makes sense for us to make the choice together. "Off to Don Bosco then," I told him, deciding in my mind that it was going to be a Don Bosco-New World match-up after all. Navigating through the Saturday EDSA traffic, however, I nonchalantly pointed to a side street at the corner of The Loyola Chapels. "There's a small church somewhere on that street," I said almost unnoticeably. "Then, let's check it out," Kiko said, turning on the eskinita, before I could even protest that the church is too hot for an afternoon wedding. Needless to say, we never got to Don Bosco. As soon as he saw the Nuestra Senora, Hubby Sweet refused to look at any other church! No ifs. No buts. "This is it, Tweet!" he said. Eh alangan namang sabihin kong sa San Jose ko gusto, sa Guadalupe siya. Mali. Patay! Hahaha. 'P


Fast-forward to the present. I'm glad we chose this particular church. It was perfect for the kind of wedding that we wanted. Not too big that it would seem hollow, but big enough to hold all our family & friends. The slight drizzle on that particular day, in hindsight, made the temperature inside the church bearable.


"Francis and Eileen, now that you have received the Holy Sacrament of Matrimony, I admonish you to remain faithful to one another," Fr. Gerry declared, signaling that the mass was about to come to its conclusion.


"Eileen, love your husband and be a good wife. Persevere in faith and love and holiness. Francis, love your wife as Christ loves his Church, and live with her in the holy fear of the Lord," he continued, "The Lord be with you."


"May he bless you by the word of His mouth."


"May he unite your hearts in an enduring bond of pure love."


"May you be blessed in your children, and may the love that you lavish on them be returned a hundredfold."


"May the peace of Christ dwell in your hearts and in your home. May you have true friends to stand by you, both in joy and sorrow."


"May you be ready with help and consolation for all those who come to you in need, and may the blessing promised to the compassionate descend in abundance on your house."


"May you be blessed in your work and enjoy its fruits. May care never cause you distress nor desire for earthly possessions lead you astray, but may your hearts' concern be always for the treasures laid up for you in heaven."


"May the Lord grant you fullness of years so that you may reap the harvest of a good life and after you have served Him with loyalty in His kingdom on earth, may He take you up into His eternal dominion in heaven."


With a smattering of "amens" from our guests after every blessing bestowed, Fr. Gerry finally gave his final blessing, "And may Almightly God bless you all. In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit."


AMEN!!! Yahoo!!! 'P


You-may-now-kiss-the-bride-portion na! Yehey!!! We turned to Fr. Gerry, waiting for the signal (hahaha!), but instead of giving us the go-ahead, he beamed at us, turned his back and asked us to follow him to the altar. "Ha?" I thought, "Ba't hindi pa you-may-now-kiss-the-bride????!!!!!" Hahaha. Slightly puzzled, we followed him nonetheless.


On the altar, the Church manong laid the marriage certificates. Oh. I see.....


"Each of you has to sign first to finally seal your intention to be married," Fr. Gerry explained, "I will only sign after you do. Please check that all the details are accurate....Una na kayo," he kidded, "Pag pinirmahan ko na yan, wala na talagang urungan." Hahaha.


I attempted to double-check the details, but could honestly, at that point in time, not process any of the words written on the sheet. My name could have been spelled Torkwata Manule and I still would have signed the darn thing! Hahaha. Fortunately, I have actually proofread the document a few weeks earlier when I submitted all the requirements to Ate Inday, the church secretary. I just trusted that I was signing the exact same document on that day.


I signed off first. Kiko signed off next. Fr. Gerry asked us a final time if we wanted him to sign it. We laughed and said yes. And so, he finally did.


"Now, you're married!" he declared, and ushered us back to the front of the sanctuary. (Ganun?! Does that mean the ceremony was for pure entertainment purposes? Hahaha! JOKE! =))


Hubby Sweet and I stood side-by-side in front of all our guests, beaming.


"Francis," Fr. Gerry admonished, "you may now kiss your bride."


Finally! Haha! 'P

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P.S. - Dear God, thanks for all the love and the peace and the work and the help and the friends and the consolation and the compassion and the fruits and the abundance and all the other blessings you have sent our way. Still, I'd like to make one more request. Would You mind sending some of the children we asked for our way soon? Haha! =D

MY MISTAKE!!! =D

Sacrilege! Haha.

Idina Menzel mooed at the moon as MAUREEN in Rent!, and not as Mimi as I had previously typed. Right vision in my head. Wrong name. Haha.

I felt compelled to correct myself. *blush-followed-by-a-sheepish-grin* =D

WICKED!!! - DEFYING GRAVITY

Here you go! The final one in this particular series. =)

Although Avenue Q won the Best Musical @ the 2004 Tony Awards (something that perplexes me actually, despite the fact that I also super love Ave Q too =)), Wicked moved on to win in 20 other categories that year including Best Actress with Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth as the two foremost runners in the category. Idina as Elpheba eventually won, and quite expectedly shared the award with Kristin. =) Must share that I was pleasantly surprised when I realized that Idina was the same actress who played the superfluous Mimi in my other super-loved musical, Rent! I didn't recognize her under the green exterior. Haha. =) Still, I must say I was impressed that she could play these two VERY DIFFERENT characters quite convincingly. Best actress nga siya! Haha! =)

Did I digress? Sorry. Haha. Back to the topic at hand! =)

After a startling discovery about the Wizard whom they held in high esteem, "Defying Gravity" marks the fork in the road between Elpheba and Galinda who forged a solid friendship and a solid reputation as the two most talented witches at Chiz (pre-Hogrwarts, yes, haha =)).

And so begins the Legend of the Wicked Witch of the West and of Glinda the Good.... =)

I WISH I WERE BACK IN BROADWAY!!!! Waaaaaaaaahhhhh!!!!