Siomai is love

It is my first time to hear mass in the Chapel of St. Clare is Katipunan, and as is customary when one visits a Church for the first time, I made a wish. It was also fitting that the reading was about love. No, I did not pray for love, I wished for something else. :D

“Nadudutom ako,” we said after the mass.

I wanted good food, so we went to Causeway to have our umami fix. I haven’t eaten there in quite a while, and I miss their bean curd. It was still early when we got there and the place was packed. We were 11th on the line, but we were seated in no time. J and M loved their chicken feet; I did not eat that. E was playing with the straw again. I loved their crab roe siomai. I can eat siomai day in and day out. :D

We bought some stuff from Hypermart in Pasig. We planned to go to Tiendesitas which was right across SM, but it was already late when we finished our groceries.

And where did my money go today?

Women authors' festival!###

Cubao Expo

I have been living near Cubao for a while now, and I frequent Gateway Mall, but I am almost ashamed to say that I haven’t set foot in Cubao Expo before tonight. I have not paid much attention to Erwin Romulo’s article in the January-February 2010 issue of Preview Magazine sitting in my desk, as he pays homage to the former Cubao X, lamenting that,

That once hallowed enclave that was once only an array of shoe retailers and one of the best Italian restaurants in the city which became an informal hang-out of independent filmmakers, conceptual artists, Palanca award-winners wearing the faces (and the paunch) of tired journalists or ad copy writers, refusenik musicians, and several creative miscreants is no more. (p.44)

I was also half-listening to G when she said we would be sourcing her shoes from Abbylyn’s in Cubao Expo.

So I did not really know what to expect, but I envisioned the place to be filled with factory outlets and whatnot. But when we got there, I was excited to see that there are rows of stores which sell pre-loved items, trinkets, clothes, antiques, cameras, old books and records, collectibles and of course, shoes. There were bars and restaurants, and artists, and girls drinking their wine straight from the bottle.

We ate at Bellini's, a cozy authentic Italian restaurant, and tried different pasta dishes and their pizza with four toppings instead. We were given a complimentary shot of sweet wine after the meal (we haven't actually reached the wine-and-cheese stage). We were trying to act like we have "leveled-up", but we ended up acting like kids. I think the three of us were amazed with what this nook in Cubao actually had to offer.

And of the things it offered me, I said yes to these. :D

I originally bought one with a handbag pendant, but the chainlink was detached from the pendant before I can even say "what shall I buy next?", so I settled for this one, but it proved to be a nicer buy.


Meet the flying pig. The charms are at P10 a pop, so cheap!

So Cubao Expo, I guess I'll be seeing you again soon. :D###

I gotta feeling

I haven't been in a bar in a really loooong time (well, except for last December's bridal shower) and I find that I don't quite miss it. I'd say, I have outgrown the need for loud music, overflowing booze, dancing till my legs hurt. I'd say, I'm old! Lola na ba.

But it is a good friend's 28th birthday, so I had to go out there. Fun. :D ###

Shine!

I have lost jewelries in various ways - stupidity, theft, robbbery. Just last year, all my earrings, except the pair I had on, were stolen, so I asked my sister to have the lost ones replaced, and voila! I also asked for something extra, something I could wear everyday. And here she is.

I just pray I dont lose her, and get to pass her along to my child someday.

N.B.
I'm calling her Lily. :) ###

I heart shoes

I am not a shopaholic, nor am I a shoe-addict. I just love shoes.

The whole point of buying shoes is falling in love with them first. Anything less than mad love is a waste of my time, and money.

And I fell in love with this pair.


Wala lang. Char lang. ###

2009 Booklist

1. After Dark, Haruki Murakami
2. Stone Gods, Jeanette Winterson
3. A Spot Of Bother, Mark Haddon
4. Para Kay B, Ricky Lee
5. Nice Girls Don't Get The Corner Office, Lois Frankel
6. Norwegian Wood, Haruki Murakami
7. Kafka on The Shore, Haruki Murakami
8. Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman, Haruki Murakami
9. South of the Border, West of the Sun, Haruki Murakami
10. Purpose-Driven Life, Rick Warren
11. Wind-up Bird Chronicle, Haruki Murakami
12. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, J. K. Rowling
13. I Want Those Shoes, Paolo Jacobi
14. Slam, Nick Hornby
15. Brida, Paulo Coelho
16. The Winner Stands Alone, Paulo Coelho
17. The Matisse Stories, A.S. Byatt
18. What I Talk About When I Talk About Running, Haruki Murakami
19. Art of War
20. The Little Black Book of Stories, A.S. Byatt
21. Bluebeard's Egg And Other Stories, Margaret Atwood
22. Boating For Beginners, Jeanette Winterson
23. A Home At The End of the World, Michael Cunningham
24. The Penelopiad, Margaret Atwood
25. The Accidental, Ali Smith
26. The Kimbles, Katherine Haighn
27. Me Talk Pretty One Day, David Sedaris
28. Poisonwood Bible, Barbara Kingsolver

N.B.:
Coming up: 2009 Drug list harharhar. :D ###

C'est finis

It is funny.

Though when you really think about it, it is not funny at all.

When you left, you crept up on me, without me noticing. I feel the loss in the pit of my stomach, in the bruises in my legs, in the gap between consciousness and sleep.

Oh yes, I feel you, although I honestly did not mean to.

This is it kiddo.

Goodbye R. I'll be seeing you in time.###

Life is short

I already know that life is short, but when life reminds me of its brevity, it never fails to catch me off-guard.

RJ passed away last Sunday. He had myocardial infarction while he was sleeping. He was only 29, but already wrote -30- this early, says Abi.

As usual, my brain cannot process the information. Is this because of my medication, or the inherent incapability of my brain to process deaths, I do not know. All I know is that I do not know anything. I am alive and he is not. ###