Spotted On My Desk: Zen Tea

Pearl milk tea or nai cha (Php 45, large size)

My trips to HK and Macau (last February & June) this year gave me a high due to my love affair with milk tea and chewy black tapioca pearls. However, a spontaneous craving for milk tea one hot mid-day led me to disappointment. I just laughed off my purchase blooper. I could've settled well with Lipton Milk Tea. I was thankful that it was not that expensive since the taste was an unsuccessful imitation of the real nai cha. Yes, Zen Tea was that bad. Tsk.

June 24: Paper Anniversary

Food trip. These two words summed up our paper anniversary. Tell me, do couples still celebrate the presence of ♥ they have for each other? Do couples still profess to each other and reassure one another that he or she is the OAO reason his or her ♥  beats? I hear a tiny voice inside me that says: Stop being mushy! LOL!

A week before June 24 (our paper anniv, imagine that), I told the BF to bring me to Serendra Piazza in BGC on the special day. Funny as it may sound, it was my very first time to set foot in this posh area in Taguig City. So, we celebrated our paper anniversary with a sumptous dinner at Zao Vietnamese Bistro. True to its name, the resto serves authentic Vietnamese cuisine, athough we both had no way of finding out whether what's authentic or not. Hey November, please come early!

 

Red equates to the word ♥, right? 

I was a bit impressed with the resto service. Upon placing our orders, our jasmine iced tea was served in less than five minutes.

 

The bottles of wine across our table

   

Fresh rolls or Gỏi cuốn (Php 195)- rice paper rolls that include shrimp, herbs, pork, rice vermicelli and other ingredients wrapped up and dipped in nước chấm or peanut sauce

 

Vietnamese beef stew (Php 345)

 

Caramelized garlic prawns (Php 395)

 

Post-dinner shots courtesy of the friendly waitress. LOL!

For dessert, we headed to Cupcakes by Sonja and ordered Peppermint Patty and Red Velvet Vixen cupcakes. See? It was definitely a food trip.

Seriously, this relationship helped me bring out my mature version. Yep. We took refuge in each other, acting as listening posts for each other's complaints. We often stood in stark contrast to the little humps and bumps we dealt with on a daily basis, and told each other as much. Our first year together illustrates the roles we happily and lovingly played for each other, in addition to perhaps highlighting how diversely we took our wimpy little problems. ♥♥♥

May 24: Pearl Couple's Day

Caveat: This serves as my dedication to the awesome pair who breathed life into me... Mr. & Mrs. B! So pardon my cheesy statements.

The union of Mr. & Mrs. B is a fine example that teamwork and respect are the key ingredients of a succesful marriage. Since May 24 is an important day in my parents' lives, a considerable chunk of blog exposure will be given to them via this post. With this, allow me to share a snippet of my folks:

Typical morning scenario: Mr. B wakes up to the sound of alarm, whips up breakfast for the pack of 7 (5 kids and them) while listening to the early morning radio news. Approximately 15 minutes later, Mrs. B wakes up, checks to see what breakfast is, complains that Mr. B should stop snoring (this has been a classic household complaint) and goes to shower. If Mrs. B disagrees to the breakfast items, she'd voice it out loud. Mr. B simply ignores it. Mrs. B will now shower while Mr. B sits in the rocking chair, obviously resting after cooking breakfast and waiting for his turn to shower. Clad in a towel, Mrs. B prepares Mr. B's plate and morning coffee. Tick-tock.  While Mr. B's inside the bath, Mrs. B will now grumble words like a military sergeant to her pack of 5. After Mr. B showered, Mrs. B will now sit in the dining table and shares breakfast with Mr. B. Classic morning topics I often hear: Philippine politics, office slackers, upcoming bonuses, who among the pack tuition fee payment is due, delicious weekend fare - in no particular order. After breakfast, toothbrush and washing some greasy pans (Mrs. B is a self-confessed OC that she won't delegate the washing of the same to others), they will now prepare and dress up for work. 20 minutes later,  Mrs. B will prepare Mr. B.'s water bottle while Mr. B distributes daily allowance of the members of the pack. And off they go to work together.

I consider myself a credible and competent witness to this morning bonding of my folks. The above scenario depicts Mr. & Mrs. B as a couple who withstood the test of time. True enough, the union of Mr. & Mrs. B is similar to a metaphor associated to a pearl - very rare, fine, admirable and valuable.

Happy Pearl Anniversary to my Mama & Papa!

Shown here with Mr. & Mrs. B are delicious items of their simple anniversary dinner of beef caldereta, vegetable lumpia, chicken pastel, siomai and Estrel's caramel cake as dessert.

Congrats, Mama & Papa! More happy years ahead!

Happy Mother's Day!

Meet Ruby, the bida/kontrabida of my life.

Name: Ruby Pineda Borja
Nickname: Baghdad (really)
Status: Happily married with 5 grown-up kids
Date of birth: May 13, 1959
Age when she gave birth to yours truly: 21 years old

Whew! I could never imagine myself being a mother at 21. But Ruby did it. She gave birth to 5 beautiful kids (clears throat) and raised them in her own unique Baghdad way. She may appear to be repetitive in almost eveything (read: nagger) but, in a split second, she will immediately give in to our "counterclaims". She's a toughie and softie combined. She taught me how to be strong and never be ashamed of myself.  She always reminds me that humility and discipline should be part of my system. She delights in my own happiness. She carries half, if not all, of my burden whenever I stumble. She is my staunch supporter, my ego booster, my resident grammarian and more. She is one helluva woman. She's our  family's answer to Gabriela.

Although a cake with the traditional message on top cannot fully express my overwhelming gratitude to her, I cannot also seem to put down in words my appreciation to this remarkable woman. 

A simple greeting which could easily melt a mother's heart would suffice, I guess. After all, she vivifies the word "mother" and lives up to that name even if her eldest (that would be me, guys) is - according to society's standards - old enough to be a mother. LOL!

I owe her my life. She is my one and only Ruby.

I LOVE YOU, MA! HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

Need I Say More?

This blog was born out of my boredom stage in the corporate world, and as I continue to document my daily musings in my personal space, challenges from left and right came to disturb my peace.

We all know that the corporate world is a diverse community. We all came from diferent backgrounds, grew up in different households, ate different kinds of food, experienced different struggles and problems. All these molded us to be our own unique and distinct selves co-mingling with all types of personalities. An individual's personality is not without imperfections or quirks. One popular personality quirk known as superiority complex can be evident in some people. Some know how to hide it, control it or simply forget about it. Some, however, choose to cling to this annoying quirk as if their worth depends on it. My opinion? They are downright pathetic to the core.

Let's be definite on this through Wikipedia's help.

"The term 'superiority complex', in everyday usage, refers to an overly high opinion of oneself; in psychology, it refers to the unrealistic and exaggerated belief that one is better than others."

I know several individuals who "fit to a tee" to the definition. They have an overly high opinion of themselves, and that characteristic can really be annoying if done repeatedly. Yes, you may think that you're bright enough but please, do not be too vain about it. Instead, keep it to yourself. Do not ever, ever, ever think that you will always be on the top of the heap; otherwise, I will just reecho my first opinion. You are downright pathetic. Think again, for Christ's sakes!

"Those exhibiting the superiority complex have a self-image of supremacy versus those with inferiority complexes; who may project their feelings of inferiority onto others who threaten their facade of superiority."

Again, it will only appear as a rehash of my first observation if I blabber some more. I stand by what I previously said.

"Those with superiority complexes may garner a negative image in those around them, as they are not concerned with the opinions of others about themselves."

I am a ringside witness to this. Inasmuch as I try to tolerate this kind of people and try to understand them as well, my tolerance has limits. Most often than not, other people's observations and my first impression would match. I think I should try paying attention to my gut feel. Negativity is such a heavy emotion. Besides, who would want to mingle with people who suddenly weigh heavy in your eyes and mind, people who think less of you and belittle your capacity without them knowing you first? No one.

"Those with a superiority complex may speak as if they are all-knowing and better than others. But ultimately they do not care if others think so or not, and will not care if others tell them so. They simply won't listen to, and don't care about, those who disagree."

"Know-It-All" type of people is such a pain in the ass. As often discussed in self-help books, these people had actually experienced some hang-ups in life and, as a result, they have low regard of themselves. In order to escape from reality, these people will assert themselves so strongly to others to the point of being a "know-it-all" just to keep their hang-ups under wraps. Yes, most of us experienced some lowest point, but again, it is a matter of seeing the big picture. I therefore conclude that superiority complex sufferers are close-minded, if not horrendously insensitive.

"Behaviors related to this in a superiority complex may include an exaggerated opinion of one’s worth and abilities, unrealistically high expectations in goals and achievements for oneself and others, persistent attempts to correct others (regardless of whether or not they are actually correct), a tendency to discredit others' opinions and over-forcefulness aimed at dominating those considered as weaker or less important."

Bingo! Need I say more?

 

Actually, when I encounter superiority complex sufferers, I try my very best to really, really, really understand them and know where they are coming from. Instead of hating them and adding to the negative energy which already envelops their whole being, I pray. I pray that they will simply shut the H-E-double-hockey-sticks up as a favor to themselves.

Affirmations for Good Luck

Below is a very timely piece I found in my 2001 diary, and I think this is pretty much appropriate for these trying times. I think I imported this from Art Borjal's column in The Philippine Star.

Every day in every way, I am getting luckier and luckier.

Every day in every way, I am getting more and more blessed.

Every day in every way, I am getting more and more fortunate.

Every day in every way, I am getting more and more favored.

Every day in every way, I am getting more and better chances and prospects.

Every day in every way, I am getting better and better at recognizing good opportunities.

Every day in every way, Lady Luck smiles at me.

Every day in every way, good fortune comes my way.

Every day in every way, I am getting better and better at creating my own good luck, realizing that only I can help myself build my own fortune and fulfill my own destiny.

Tuesday Meme Express: Pacman's Vitwater Line

Every Tuesday, The Daily Meme suggests the readers to write a thought provoking meme in honor of the Meme express. On my way to work, I chanced upon a thought-provoking albeit amusing line of our Pambansang Kamao in his Vitwater billboard. Funny, right?

Vitwater and I share a somewhat memorable moment. You know, Vitwater was part of my four (4) Sunday kits last September 2008. Despite the fact that its color made me hesitant to go "bottom's up", I willingly brought a bottle to face the biggest mental battle in my life. So that's the amusing part. And now let's tackle the thought-provoking part. For a few enchanting seconds, I became challenged. With Pacman's face plastered on it and some parallelism*, I think this is part of my baby steps to box** all the imaginary demons along my way and pursue my dream. 

*I dunno what it is really. Peace!

**With the right attitude serving as my gloves

Gem of Thought: Perfect Love

The bottom line is that (a) people are never perfect, but love can be, (b) that is the one and only way that the mediocre and vile can be transformed, and (c) doing that makes it that. We waste time looking for the perfect lover, instead of creating the perfect love.

-Tom Robbins, Still Life With Woodpecker

When Boredom Strikes

Silent nights like this and knowing that my loved ones are sleeping peacefully make me emotional. Very emotional that I could not stop my tears from brimming in my eyelids. I can feel them now, ready to fall, and I'm not stopping them. They say that tears can literally clean your eyes and soothing for your soul, provided they voluntarily and willingly fall.

I now begin to ask myself why. I feel blessed and I'm truly happy. That's what the tears are all about. I happily blame the spirit of wellness of the holiday season.

I'm happy that my parents are supportive of me all along and even happier that they are both in good health. There were times in the past that I'd bargain with God my share of happiness and success in exchange of my parents' good health. I just couldn't afford to see them sick. It breaks my heart whenever I see my father tired from field work or my mother complaining of her migraine. God knows that, and I'm grateful that He hears this unselfish prayer.

I'm happy that I get to spend time with my siblings, despite our mood swings. We have always been like that way back our younger years. My two younger brothers (one of them is now married) are my loyal allies ever since the three of us outgrew childhood. My youngest brother though is the moody of us all. Back when all my demands/rules were followed by my two younger brothers, my youngest brother represents the axis powers. I never understood the concept that the youngest should be treated well, loved well and that we should all give in to his whims and caprices. Long before he (the youngest brother) came, I felt I was the center of attention. I was the only girl then, and I'm the most behaved one among the pack. And then the only sister was born, and I really felt my entire world was then turned upside down. She's the little princess, and we're at her mercy. When she cries in our arms during her baby days, it will be our fault. Hahaha!

I'm happy that I have a boyfriend whose major goals match with mine. Just when I almost got tired of searching for a partner and at the brink of giving up, God gave him to me. All in all, he's my incentive.

THERE IS SO MUCH TO BE THANKFUL FOR.

I acknowledge what and who I have and I thank God for that.

I think of the pointless war in Iraq and the millions of lives lost and affected by it, I think of the poverty in this country and the poor people who suffer because of corrupt politicians, I think of the families affected by recent calamities, natural and man-made, I think of those who no longer have the chance to experience pain and happiness and suffering and joy. When I think of these, I realize I'm truly blessed and my own petty worries do not even measure up to the problems of those who literally live in pain and sorrow every day of their lives.

I'll sleep now.