I've had better days

Today was quite boring. I actually dozed off a bit at work. Must be the lack of caffeine. Imagine, I was too sleepy to even bother getting a cup of joe which would only just take me less than 10 minutes. You know those blah days where you just want the day to end and go home and sleep or do something else other than what you're doing? Yeah, today's one of those days. I hate blah days. They're really just that...blah.

I'm happy that tomorrow's Friday. There's just something about that particular day of the week that gets me excited, like something cool's going to happen beginning with Friday. It doesn't necessarily happen that the weekend's going to be packed with fun stuff to do, but the fact that you're not going to do work-related activities makes Friday, Saturday, and Sunday the best days of the week (haha!). Although Sunday's a bittersweet day for me. It's the 'rest day' for a lot of people, but at the same time it's the day before the dreaded Monday where everyone will get back to the daily grind of work or school.

I'm thinking about what I'll be doing this weekend. Most of the time, I end up not doing what I initially planned to do on Saturdays. I have quite a few stuff lined up, and I think I'll be able to accomplish everything...if I wake up early. It's so hard to wake up on weekends! I get lost in my sheets and I sleep in until 9 or 10 a.m Lately, though, I've been waking up earlier than usual like 8 or 8:30. I do have a few things in mind about what I'll do this Saturday...

1. JOG. I need to, I've been feeling sluggish and heavy and I hate it :(

2. Finally try Nomnomnom, a restaurant about 10 minutes from my house. It's a quirky looking place, based on pictures I've seen on the net. The food's good according to reviews so I might as well try it.

3. Have my Pentax checked. I've been saying this for a while now, but I do need to have my camera repaired because whenever I have films developed only half of the shot comes out!

4. Of course, go thrift shopping again! A girl can never have enough dresses :)

5. Buy a few cool stuff for my brand new laptop! Yay! My mom bought me a new one because my old laptop's almost ready to retire. Not really, it's just that I've been wanting to have my laptop replaced with a faster working one but I didn't have the heart to part with it since my dearest grandfather was the one who got it for me. I think my old one will be in good hands as I'll be giving it to my brother.

6. Get a foot spa and manicure. My nails badly need pampering!

playing favorites

I now have a new favorite dress in my closet....

..another one of my fab finds!! I bought it for 165 pesos (roughly US $4!!). I'm definitely going back to that thrift store.

Today, I had lunch at Orchard Road (again) with my friend Raiza. I tried the Lemon Fish served with fried egg and rice, while Raiz had Chicken Curry with rice. We also ordered shrimp dumplings. Unfortunately, I didn't like the Lemon Fish. The fish (deep-fried batter-coated fillets) was okay, although it was a bit bland. The lemon part wasn't really appetizing for me. It was like the fish was just topped with lemon jam or chutney. I wish they cooked the lemon chutney with the deep-fried fillets. This would've made the dish tastier. I don't really get the role of the egg because it didn't add anything to the entire dish. I ate the egg because I couldn't eat the fish anymore. On a positive note, the Chicken Curry was REALLY good. I'm a sucker for curry, and I tell you the curry sauce was just superb. The right amount of heat, and the flavor was just...wow. The shrimp dumplings weren't bad, either. I'd definitely go back to Orchard Road even just for the dumplings. I mentioned in my previous entry that I'd have to assess the place based on new dishes I've tried. The only thing I can say about Orchard Road is that it needs to be consistent. Make every dish great. An officemate of mine told me that she and her friends also ordered the Lemon Fish before and they didn't like it too. So yeah, I think Orchard Road's a nice place to have a filling meal in but there should be more consistency in terms of the taste of all the dishes. FYI: Orchard Road is on the 2nd floor of Mega Mall Bldg. A (beside Skin Food).

Looks yummy...but not really :( I hope that they'll improve this dish.

Yummy shrimp dumplings!!

To-die-for Chicken Curry!

And if you must know...I STILL did not go to Forever 21. Must. Save. For. GORGEOUS. Shoes.

dress week

I'm obviously in the mood to just wear dresses this week. Well, I'm still thinking if I should wear my jumpsuit tomorrow or wear another one of my fab finds. It'll all depend on my mood when I wake up.

I wore another thrifted dress today for work. Surprise surprise, it's not black, gray, or brown hahaha! It's..ummm...greenish. I forgot the exact shade. It doesn't look green in the pictures, though. Looks a bit blue. Whatever, it's really a deeper shade of green.

Anyway, I got a bit peeved this evening because I had to wait for my mom for almost two hours before she was able to pick me up. I know it's not her fault, but...yeah. I was in no mood to talk when she finally picked me up. I could've commuted home, but I had 2 big bags with me and a camera so taking the MRT and jeep home wouldn't be a good idea. Best part of the evening was dinner at Orchard Road in Megamall. I had the Hainanese Chicken Rice. It was pretty good. I'll go back and try other dishes. I'll have to research more about the place. I've been reading a few reviews about the place. Pretty mixed opinions about it. I'd really have to try the dishes for myself to assess if it's worth going back to or not. I must say, the prices are reasonable. Dinner kept my mind off Forever 21 on the same floor, haha!

Pretty lamps...I want those for my room :))

dress obsession

I am seriously obsessed with dresses. I only wear jeans when I've run out of dresses to wear, and I only wear slacks to the office if I have a meeting. I usually wear summer dresses, dress shirts, corporate dresses, etc. Yeah, I like dresses. Hahaha!

This weekend, I went thrift shopping and bought FIVE dresses for less than a thousand bucks. That's actually more than what I usually spend in thrift shops, but the items weren't on sale yet. Yes, thrift shops do have sales and sell clothes for ridiculously low prices. For that particular shop, the next sale will be in August so I'd have to cross my fingers that the items I didn't buy will still be on the racks when I go back. I don't really have any problem with thrift shopping. I do splurge once in a while but I've always loved going through clothes racks in thrift shops and coming out with fab finds. I've bought dresses and blouses that look like stuff from Zara and Topshop for a fraction of the price. There are times that we do have to be practical about shopping, ladies :)

Anyway, I had one of the dresses I bought washed already so I could wear it to work today. I particularly like this dress because it looks like something I saw from Mango about two months ago but I decided not to buy it since the price was pretty hefty that time (I just spent my hard-earned moolah on a trip and bills). What I like about the dress is that it's made of satin, the print's nice, and the length's not too short!

I'll be posting more of my great finds this week and next week. I might even go back to that store again this weekend, and possibly another one ;)

current frustrations

1. Forever 21 just opened in Manila. There's an ongoing sale in Mango AND Zara. I have money, but I don't want to spend it. Boo.

2. I'm tracking how I've been spending my money. I'm afraid that after this week, I'll feel bad and get mad at myself for being such an impulsive spender. I've been planning on opening two more bank accounts, plus another account with my insurance (more on forced savings, actually). The reality of adult life...sucks. I'm trying to look at it positively, i.e. I guess I'm being financially responsible (I think).

3. No replies yet from my job applications. I guess I still have a purpose here in my current job. Maybe I'm being taught some sort of life lesson. But mark my words, I WILL get a job that's related to my one true love: Development. *crossing my fingers for Asia Foundation*

4. There's this guy that I really like now. We're really close. He's a great friend. He's also cute, not my type of cute though. But....he's gay. Why is it that I fall for the guys who are seemingly gay or are really gay? There's something off with my taste in men. Sheesh.

5. I'm having a hard time organizing a group for a foodie trip I'm planning to Bale Dutung, Pampanga. It's said to be one of the best foodie experiences you'll have here since it's hosted by renowned Chef Claude Tayag and his wife Ms. Mary Ann. My lovely godsister Tippy was able to go there with her family and their friends.

So there, I'm done (semi) ranting. Hopefully I'll be able to post something 'happier' later this day. After work.

Pahiyas Festival 2010

I went to the Pahiyas Festival in Lucban, Quezon last month with my brothers and three of my closest friends. We joined a tour group organized (again) by Travel Factor. The trip was quite interesting because

a. Our bus ride to Lucban from Metro Manila took 7 hours instead of the usual 3.

b. It was incredibly hot that day. Not really the nice type of weather you'd want when you're going to walk outside.

c. The traffic to the town proper was horrible. So many people wanted to go in but the streets were too crowded for cars to pass.

d. There were so many people it didn't feel like a festival, but more of a pilgrimage.

e. Our trip back to Manila took 6 hours.

So what is the Pahiyas Festival? This fiesta is in celebration of the Feast of San Isidro, the patron saint of farmers. Historically, farmers would gather offer their harvest for thanksgiving. They'd have a huge celebration believing that this would mean another prosperous year of harvest for them. For more of the Pahiyas Festival's history, you can check it out here.

The trip could've been better without the inconveniences, but hey--we enjoyed it nevertheless. I loved the house decorations, the parade was very colorful, and our dinner was free hahaha! I have an aunt who has a house in Lucban and she invited us over for dinner. God, we were stuffed! I can't believe that people would really spend so much on decorating their houses with kiping leaves, veggies, and fruits. I don't think the prize money was as big as the amount spent on the decorations, haha! Oh well, all in the name of being honored as having the best decorated house for the year's Pahiyas.

Batangas Food (semi) Adventure

I went to Batangas today to visit my college BFF Peaj. Initially, the plan was just to have lunch at Cafeno in San Juan. Peaj decided to take me on a mini-food trip.

At Cafeno, Peaj had chicken adobo flakes served with garlic rice while I had the steamed chicken with three dipping sauces also served with garlic rice. She had the tamarind iced tea while I had the pandan iced tea. The food was really good. I liked the menu--there were enough options for you to choose from but you wouldn't be overwhelmed by the variety. I wish we were able to try the dessert and the coffee. It was too hot so we decided to save those for our next visit. What I didn't like about our visit was that there was no electricity :| It was so hot, I tell you. I think we would've enjoyed our stay more if there was a fan and it wasn't so humid. Nevertheless, the ambiance and the food more than made up for the heat :) What I also like about the place are the decorations and the establishment itself. It's basically an old, Spanish house with a lot of cool vintage items used as decorations. I wasn't able to take a picture of our table--it was quite an ingenious idea to use old sewing machines as dining tables! Cafeno's definitely worth another visit! I'd like to bring my other friends there. I think they would enjoy the place.

After eating at Cafeno, we had halu-halo (a Filipino dessert/snack that's basically shaved ice and milk mixed with ingredients that vary depending on where you are) in Padre Garcia (I think it's a town). The common ingredients you'd find halu-halo served with in almost all areas here in the country would be leche flan, ube (purple yam), and minatamis na saba (a small but thick variety of banana sliced then simmered in water with brown sugar to make a light caramel sauce). The halu-halo we had was quite different. I never imagined you could eat it with mashed kamote (sweet potato/yam)! At first I thought it was mashed squash, haha! The other ingredients mixed in were the three ones I mentioned, a bit of corn, garbanzos, and gulaman (jelly). I'd have to agree with Peaj, that was the best halu-halo I've ever had! Even better than Razon's (which is famous for its halu-halo).

We were supposed to go to this resort of sorts in Lipa City, but the traffic was horrendous so Peaj brought me to Cafe de Lipa. I think there are branches here in Metro Manila already, but I'd rather go to the original one :) The coffee was good! I was surprised that I liked the kape barako (a variety of coffee that's quite strong...barako def. strong/tough). I didn't add any milk or sugar. I think they added a bit of whipped cream on top since I told the barista that it was my first time to drink kape barako and I didn't want the experience to be memorable (i.e. not get any sleep until tomorrow hahaha). According to the barista, all the coffee beans used in Cafe de Lipa are from the owner's coffee farm. I actually bought a pack of ground beans which I brought home :) I'll be using that to cut down on my Starbucks expenses hehehe :p

I will definitely go back to Batangas and go on a foodie adventure with Peaj. She has yet to bring me to the other hole-in-the-wall places she's been telling me about. I can't wait to visit Batangas again!