The Woman Behind BALUT MANILA

First meeting in Bo's Coffee in MOA with Arvin last February 2013

Lately, I was thinking how to surprise the woman behind the blog “BALUT MANILA” on her upcoming birthday. Ideas seem rare but some are proving to be worthy.  

Few days ago, making a picture greeting was at the back of my mind. But, I just feel that it’s quite an understatement to a person whom I maintained good friendship with through out my blogging life -not only online but in person as well. 

Undeniably, it's both our "gone-in-the-calendar" age that swiftly in tuned us. She's a devoted mom to a number of children and a loving wife to his only God's gift. While yours truly is a father of soon to be two kids and a supportive hubby to my God's gift as well. 

When she talks I listen and versa. Call it the same wave length - perhaps that's how to describe how we get along so well. She's passionate in writing - the same as I do. Another common denominator between us is our love of reading.  

If I'd go back to recall the first encounter I had with her blog - trust me - you'll be disappointed because I cannot remember when it has started. All I'm sure about was the year - it was year 2011 when her blog captured my interest. I'm particularly intrigued with its name "Balut Manila" - of which when we finally had the chance to talk she told me the back story. As I read some entries, I quickly had the desire to go back and read for more. Her Sundays Quote and Photograph didn't fail to impress me. I realized as well that she's into poetry too, like me.

A Birthday Treat

Perhaps, one might think that I’d be spending bucks to shoulder his birthday expenses. I cannot do that – not even close to what I think of. It’s impossible given the current location we each have. Plus, I think he has more money than I do - haha.

But for a person who finds creativity an always engaging thing to do, there’s always a great way to make ones birthday a much happier one. 

I need to dig my online files if I'd be specific of how long our friendship has been now.It's kind of a tall order to do. But as far back as I can remember, our friendship started two years ago.

35 Reasons Why This Guy Is Endearingly Likeable

Firstly, I want to say sorry in advance (kumpare) if I bravely reveal your number - I mean the length of time you're existing here on Earth -- up to this moment (without even asking permission from you). It's because my post has something to do with numbers - lols! I just can't hide it haha. Had I became a magician in my past life this could be avoided by doing magic tricks - haha! :)

Okay here we go, 35 reasons - wow that's awesome indeed, right? And equally challenging as I need to dig deep of our friendship.

She's Just A Lovely Girl: HAPPY BIRTHDAY Dimple!

Perhaps when you see her in person, the first thing you'll notice is her smile factor that is closely coordinated with her tantalizing eyes. It's as if the two senses connived to project an appealing arrive. 

Her name is Claudine Zyra Capistrano, Please here by calling her nick Dimple. Registered Nurse and is currently connected at National Guards Hospitals. A new recruit in our community. I'm not quite sure how long she has been working at the hospital. But if I may overheard it right, I guess, six months or more. 

I happen to know her since we're the Couple Coordinator handling the SFC Ladies here in our community. Last night, she was in our house together with other SFC ladies for their weekly household meeting - it's a spiritual gathering intended for bible reading, worship, teaching, and fellowship.

Of International Camaraderie: The Sheikh & The Little Prince

Perhaps you might be thinkin' if the title really speaks for itself. I mean the real thing. And that I have met one of the Sheikhs here and his little prince. Hahaha! Brace yourself it's just my kumpareng Randy Turiano.

Earlier tonight, my wife and little C attended the "International Community Day" celebration annually held by the National Guard Health Affairs (NGHA) - where my wife and kumpare work. It's a yearly tradition showcasing different cultures & traditions represented by employees of NGHA who hails from various countries.

Basically, its purpose is to promote international camaraderie and cultural diversity - showcasing some native stuff coming from each participating country. Allowing everyone to get to know more of other countries cultures and traditions. 

I didnt' bother to go with them since I'm quite lazy to go out due to the cold weather. Plus, I'm working on the plans for our upcoming "Family Day" wherein a brainstorming slash meeting will happen tomorrow to finalize the various activities for the said event.

Of Life's Moments, Of Celebration, Of Drooling Foods and Supportive Community Friends

The Birthday Girl

Her name is JENNIFER ZABALA. 

Call her "Jeng" as her nick.

She maybe the first one who will be my pioneering entry about “Birthday Celebrations Of 2014” but surely she’ll not be the only one in the coming days and months. I decided to feature birthdays of people in our spiritual community – well for those I am fully aware of because obviously I don’t know everyone's birthday in our community – just to step up my commitment to the core group where I belong and share life with. I’d like to call it as my “extra love” in letting them feel how they matter to us in our community.

It's How You Play It - A Mother's Day Tribute

During childhood, she’d always tells me “character is more important than any winning or success”. 

That in any battle in life, it is all about the performance you’ve shown regardless of winning or losing. It's how you play it!

Any pursuit of victory is a noble goal but the winners in life appreciate the pursuit more than the victory itself. 

His Name Is JOHN HOWARD - And I Am Proud Of Him

Eto ang mga panahon na ginagaya mo si Lee Min Ho hahaha! (Joke)
Kaya naisipan mong mag long hair hahaha!

8:18PM - KSA

As of this writing, I'm pretty sure you're in your bed already, sleeping deeply, and perhaps communed with softly cushioned pillows on both sides of your bed. And probably right now, your snoring sound have passed through your window sills echoing right across your neighbor's house- LoLs!

Or maybe you're in a beautiful dream - walking towards the aisles ready to receive that one special paper that you've worked hard for 3 long years to achieve. 

BLOGGERS’ MEET-UP: About Meeting Place, Of Food, Of Fun, and Of Awesome Bonding - PART 2

Me, Senyor (Christian), Pao, Mecoy & Bino

I'm pretty sure you're kind of "bitin" sa first part ng meet up namin. You might be guessing, thinking, assuming there's more of it. Well, yeah there is  and here’s the second part of our meet-up last February 9.

Just a bit of info - most of these bloggers hailed from the South of Manila except for the rose among the thorns - Senyor who happens to be from Pasig. I came from Carmona, Cavite, though I got a place in GMA Kamuning too, Pao from Calamba, Mecoy from Cavite City and Bino is from Alabang. 

Wonder where we headed-off after the Fish and Co. experience? The photo on the upper left was the teaser - actually 'the proof'.

BLOGGERS’ MEET-UP: About Meeting Place, Of Food, Of Fun, and Of Awesome Bonding - PART 1

Pao, Me, the famed blogger 'Bino' of Damuhan, and Mecoy

If you pursue blogging, one must (in my opinion) be ready to the idea of meet-ups with fellow bloggers. It's hard to exist as a blogger if you're not open to such things. 

Well, for anonymous bloggers it may  sounds threatening to them. For anonymous ones, it's like unmasking their anonymity and so I presume that they aren't really into "meet-ups" which is clearly logical. 

Meeting up strangers that only exists in the online world somehow gives us qualms and misgivings right?

There are “what” and “if” that haunts us occasionally. Pretty normal right? 

But on the other end of the rope, there is this certain amount of excitement that pushes us to go and to get to know them in real time and real world. And that's what had happened to us  last February 09, 2013 when we finally had our chance of seeing each other in person.

About Suzuki Cup, of Blog Contest, Of Vacation, Of FB-ing, and of Recent Pinas Happenings: RANDOM THOUGHTS

Yesterday was a “ME TIME” for me.

Today is a brand new day, brand new hope, and I must say a brand new me? Opps…yeah I guess a start of a brand new me. A modified version of me (parang upgraded lang na laptop or PC hehe) , a filtered one (parang nag unclog lang), a detached being from some worldly guilty pleasures. (Sssh…guilty pleasures? Haha..do I have that?) Well what I mean by that is “when you slowly detach from things that is not so important, that without one won’t really affect your life, and that not having or maintaining one is actually freeing yourself from the enslaving habit.  

Ok, enough of that! Let us talk ramdom. I got few of 'em in my mind. I'll just provide you my insights and opinions about some topics that interest me.

About Wishes, of Sharing, of Giving, and of Christmas Spirit: A Highlighted Way of Generosity

It’s almost Christmas season. When the month of November finally bids good bye, the onset of the season of merriment and joy clearly is on its way. And it’s the spirit that it brings that counts a lot right?. 

For us Christians who celebrate Christmas, it’s the feelings we put into celebrating the reminder of our Savior’s birth. We kind of brace ourselves into the season's wind of euphoria, of joy, of giving, of sharing, of reconciliation, of rekindling relationship and of strengthening our faith to Him who is the giver of all that there is in this world.

About Sending a Happiness & Joy of Gift-giving: My Birthday's Blog Contest

December is my month. Why I say my month? It's because I'll be celebrating my "nth" birthday-hahaha! Apart from the fact that it is the month of the grandest season of the year - Christmas Season, I like December for its euphoric festivities.

Since it’s my upcoming birthday on the 7^th day of December, I have thought and decided to design a blog contest as my token of appreciation for would-be-greeters and also to thank God for giving me again another year. But  “AMAsorry” hahaha! I won’t give out details of how old I will be on December hahaha  (walang basagan ng trip- kanya kanya lang yan, walang pakialamanan hehehe!). But honestly, I’m in my early 30’s already. Let’s just put it this way, an early 30’s guy who possesses a heart of an early 20’s. Hahaha!

And to further my personal details, I got married last December 13, 2011 at Transfiguration Chapel in Caleruega Church in Nasugbu, Batangas ( yong famous na kinakasalan ng ibang mga celebrities). Nakisali lang hahaha. Now, God gifted us with a soon to be two-months old baby boy (first born) named “Damien Caleb”. FYI, his name is also a product of a blog-contest Suggest A Name Contest: Our Online Search For A Christian Name. My kumpare, Jeo Beloy of Go Figure is the rightful winner of the said blog contest. 

About Simbang Gabi, Puto Bumbong, & Christmas Carols: 10 Things I Love About "Krismas in da Pilipins"

We’ve past Halloween season. We’ve paid our due respect to our departed loved ones.

Now, the focus of the people is on the yuletide season. The hustle and bustle of the metro is on. The big rush on the streets, the busy shopping centers and malls, the overcrowding in Divisoria. Christmas songs being heard from every corner, from every houses. Indeed, there is no stopping the onset of the grandest season of the year. 

This time, I'll make a countdown of the different things I love about celebrating Christmas in Pinas. For us working abroad, nothing can beat the longing we feel every year that we miss celebrating Christmas back in Pinas with our family, relatives, and friends. It's hard. No! It's really hard. So I'll just contain myself enumerating things that will somehow ease that feeling of isolation from the rest of the family during Christmas. 

As a Filipino, we have intrinsic qualities that separate us in celebrating Christmas. Most often, we brand our celebration "Christmas Pinoy Style". I would proudly say that we're the only nation which celebrates this festivity in a month long period.

About Spot on Moments, Laughter, and Rolls: "The FUSHI Experience"

November 6, 2012

Unplanned! Yes, this is the exact word for it. None of us knew that it would happen but it did. And we had fun, great fun. Nothing can beat the idea of an unplanned meet up because it's spot on and friends available just converged with us that night. I won't elaborate on how we ended up in Fushi but I'll try to divert your attention highlighting my raw and unofficial food review. I'll briefly chronicle in the later part about how the unexpected meet up was.

I am a neophyte cook and perhaps my review won't be at par with those whose knowledge about culinary and food are to vow for. This is just an attempt of how I find this new found restaurant so far. New for me since it was my first visit..

I had been in several oriental restaurants in Manila particularly those which caters Korean and Chinese food. I'm a lover of Korean food - a thing which has been introduced to me when I tutored two Korean students in BF Homes in Paranaque way back 2006 until late of 2007. As far back as I can remember, the only Japanese restaurant that I frequent to is the all accessible TOKYO, TOKYO which you can find anywhere in the metro. None in my wildest fancy will I ever encounter one Japanese inspired resto that caters mostly Japanese food. Let alone here in the Mideast - KSA in particular. Though I'm not sure if all are authentic Japanese cuisines since nowadays, food fusion abounds everywhere. I presume they serve a variety of Asian dishes that makes it more of an Asian cuisine and not purely Japanese. Oriental cuisine fusion so to speak. 

Before we went straight inside this fancy restaurant, I was caught in awe of its exterior design, the blending of colors make it more attractive that anyone who passes by would easily generate interest taking a peek inside and eventually dine in. 

The entrance area. - it's flashy in lavender and neon green color

Para Sa Iyo, Mahal Kong Ina

"The heart of a MOTHER

is a deep abyss

at the bottom of which

you will always

find forgiveness."

-HONORE DE BALZAC-

Just awhile ago while browsing the net, I came across a screen pop-up in one of the sites I've visited and it's reminding of next week's Mother's Day celebration. 

Suddenly, my mind was like shelling out countless of various thoughts. Thoughts for my own mom. My dearest "inay". My nanay. The woman chosen by God to bear me for nine months. A lady carefully picked by our Creator to carry a boy who later will be HIS servant. And as a gesture of paying homage to the home maker, my poetic side will be put to testing water once again. Seldom when I compose poems in my own language. My poem collection are mostly done in English and my Tagalog entries can be counted using one hand only. And this entry will prove that I can be better if not the best of both worlds.

Wake Up To Happiness

Wow, the title is so challenging!

Challenging nga ba?

Para sa akin, ang happiness is a state of mind. A state where no one can provide you. Only you can decide upon it. Don't fool me with statements like: "Oh! you made me happy. Your presence is a happiness to me. When you came into my life I became happier. Such a crap! (sorry, sinubukan ko lang gumamit ng curse na ganyan--it's not me..hahaha).

You can't derive, get, or achieve happiness by borrowing it from other people. Your happiness should come from WITHIN YOU- it comes from your inner core and you just let it transcends out.

Like what I've said, happiness is a state of one's mind. The things, people, and events that trigger you to pour out the already happy state in you are just all additions that heighten that state in you.

When I woke up today morning, I opened my laptop and randomly browse a video that touches my heart even more to my soul. It feels good to see this kind of gesture by COCA COLA Philippines to come-up with this idea. It's grand yet it's inspirational. The families involve was put spot-on and startled in awe of the unexpected Christmas gift to them. Check this video and feel good.

Our mind is an amazing instrument. When we truly learn to make use of our mind's potential, it's like having a big power tool that is much faster, easier, and more efficient - THAT IS -we can set our mind to whatever we want to. I am convinced that happiness or unhappiness depends on the way we meet the events of life than on the nature of those events.

So stay happy lang mga peeps, don't make a room for DAMN things but LOVE.

And so I say: "Wake up to happiness! Shake up the happiness! :))


Are you naturally a happy person?

Joining The Meme Hype

Recently, the DOT launched its tourism campaign for this year. Everyone's going ga-ga about it to the point of harvesting different reactions nationwide and even the world. While lots are happy there were others whom were so cynical about the idea.

40 Days Vacation: Day 2

Sunday- November 20, 2011

We visited SM Megamall last Sunday basically for one purpose- attend a Sunday mass. It was a surprise to my fiancee when she learned that the priest to conduct the 12:30pm mass is Father Mario. The same priest who is viewed online via TFC.

After the mass, we headed to Goldilocks and bought a cake as our birthday present to my lovable niece- Jia Alexandria.

While waiting in line inside the store, I randomly took photos of the different varieties of cakes and here are those random photos.

The cake we bought for Jia

We went out of the mall and tripped to take some photos in front of the mall and here's the attraction in between the entrance alley.

 

And the influx of people that's going to and fro in this mall whose famed in the late 90's as one of the biggest, if not the biggest mall.

We headed to Carmona, Cavite- the place of my ate to join the simple celebration of my niece birthday. What we bought for her was a cake. Here's some photos:

My Ate's family: Nikko, Ate, Jia (the birthday girl), Kuya & John Howard

It was a simple celebration that truly worth treasuring since we're almost complete in the family. My nanay and tatay, my ate and her family. The only two people missing in the scene are our youngest who happens to be twins. Jorlan in KSA and Jordan in UAE.

Stag Party

I was startled! 


Completely surprised that I was just tongue-tied and had a blank yet suspecting stare.


I am actually planning for one. And I even think yet unsure if a stag party is a party thrown-away for the engaged bachelor by close friends or the bachelor himself host it. 

Last Friday, I must say, was like an epic, first-of-its-kind, classic fun, and unconventional kind of stag party. I never knew it would be that early as I have my separate plan to throw a stag party for myself next week. 


Never did I thought that the culprits --SFC Dammam Boys, as masterminded by the Unit Leader Sattie McScotty would host a "Stag Party" (our modified verison) for me and bro. Roy when all I was expecting was just a Unit Assembly as he disclosed to me when we're talking about some details. He even told me that I should take a rest in the "creative department" of our Unit since I always take a critical role in almost all the creative side in any of the activities we do.


And so the party had began.


My suspicion grew bigger and clearer when I saw sets of condom in a box which at first I thought it was special balloons -- poor boy. LoL! hahaha! 


And so we were called in front. Two of us cross-seated. The first game was like a "bottom line" kind of stuff. People around were asked to look for any object from around the "House of Voices". Anything that they want to pick out or up and let them explain in a "naughty way" associating us why they choose that particular thing. It was funny though since some of them can't even ace how to deliver a funny/naughty explanation about the object they were holding. And it was like so off that bursting into laughter is like far from happening. Good thing, some were so spontaneous that rendered the everyone in audible laughter. It was like an ice-breaker since after that the fun continuously soaked in.


There comes a point where the top three funniest jokes graced with an opportunity to ask us with a "straight-forward & inside the-baul" kind of naughty question. I don't know if some thought that Roy and I would pass with a question or won't answer it. But to their surprise, we did what must be done. We answered all their questions without any second thoughts.  We're unsure if some were a bit shocked, or in disbelief. Or maybe they weren't even thinking that I've done this or done that. Well, surprises are surprises. You'll never know unless you've asked me before. It all boiled down on how far and deep have they knew me. LoL!


The crazy part of the party was when we grouped them into three and the boys had to present a "naughty dance" for us. This time, I can hardly hear due to the boisterous cheers and laughter surrounding the room. And what made it so wacky was that the performers didn't even realized they were videotaped by bro. Ken as I prodded him to do so. Sorry guys, I still need to grab a video copy from bro. Ken to upload it here. Just watch out for it.


That night was awesome. And the poker game wherein I lost 3 times and was punished to wear a blouse they borrowed from Sis. Mico . I can't hardly contain myself since the blouse was too-fit and the portion near the under arms was like tightly gripped and I was really uncomfy. They told me to wear it until the party is done, but I took it off after twenty minutes I guess.


You might wonder there ain't no girl wrapped in box as a present for us. Just to let you know, we are in a very strict country and having one would risk ourselves into a prison cell if caught in the act. So, we did the party in a modified version--our own version. A version safer and funnier.


Photos and Videos to be uploaded soon. 


ITUTULOY......