Matcha, Matcha (Wo)Man

Since coming back from my trip to Japan last year, I've been looking for green tea soft serve ice cream or at least a decent substitute. Since Koots Green Tea, previously located in Bellevue's Lincoln Square, closed, it seemed that my green tea fix would just have to be satiated when I'm back in Japan again. But alas, my search has been fruitful.

Today, I found Maeda-en Green Tea ice cream at my local Uwajimaya. This is what I'm talking about! Creamy, mildly sweet, and green tea-licious!

For those who think green tea should be drank (or just need a sugar kick in the late afternoons), Starbucks is offering half-price green tea (and all other flavors) Frappuccinos from 3-5pm starting tomorrow until May 16.

I'll be in green tea nirvana for awhile. :)

Let's Get Physical

Talk about excellent timing. For the past two weeks, I've been buying new exercise clothes/shoes in hopes of getting my fitness act together (those Olympians sure made me feel like I should be doing something more with my body). I'm proud to say that I've been consistently attending my twice-a-week, painful Step & Sculpt fitness class (having a nice and fit instructor is awesome). Yesterday, I bought a digital scale for measuring my sexiness accurately (it ain't reality until you see it in LED). Today, by the power of the fitness gods, there happened to be a wellness fair at work.

At lunchtime, I got my blood pressure, glucose level, cholesterol level, and BMI checked...for free. Surprisingly, my blood pressure is "Normal" (that's one level up from "Optimal" and four levels down from "Severe"), my glucose level is way below the recommended level (112, baby!), and my cholesterol level is "Desirable." I guess those fudge brownies I've been eating have gone undetected! Or maybe not because my body fat percentage is plain horrible (which I knew from my last BMI check some years ago).

As a results-oriented person, losing weight should be achievable because I'm working with numbers and results can easily be measured ("bling bling like LED" according to CL of 2NE1). Instead of wasting my money on things that collect dust, I should invest thy spare change towards fitness-related expenses. Starting this weekend, I'm going to write a target weight goal and shall work towards it. Thy will be done!

Oh, the very Filipino and very local JR

Today was WA Olympians Day in Seattle with a "rally" at our signature rally place, Westlake Center in Downtown. My monthly $130 cable and high-speed internet bill seems justified now: thank you, Comcast.

Move over youngins, this veteran is coming through. Been there, and definitely done that (2002: Apolo Ohno Day at Westlake). This event was simply a reminder of how quickly time flies by and how I'm getting old (should I be grateful?). While groupies (who should be at school, by the way) screamed and giggled around me, I was just there looking on and glad to witness a day in honor of a Pinoy Winter Olympic medalist. I still can't get over that little fact. And yes, I even wore my Adidas Philippines shirt to this event because my Pinoy Pride was just oozing out of me. LoL.

I spotted Nanay Celski and Tita Virginia in the crowd, but I was holding my front-row spot for when the Olympians came out of the mall (which became a not-so-nice front-row spot within seconds because of a huge security guard who had his own camera out). By the time I was ready to put down my camera and make chika, KING5's Lori beat me to the family members. Eventually, Daddy Celski joined them. I found it amusing that I knew who they were, thanks to those signature parents shots during the Olympics.

While people filed in line to get an autograph, I decided to go into the mall to see if *ahem a certain family member was around. I didn't know that the food court at Westlake is packed during lunchtime (duh, Mina). While walking towards the escalators, I noticed a few people turn around and looked at me. I was like, "Oh hell no, did I not wipe my nose?" Then I quickly realized that I was sporting red, navy blue, and white; people probably thought I was one of the Olympians. Sorry folks, I'm Queen Mina and not an ice princess. LoL.

I eventually went back to the parking garage to make sure that I only had to pay for one hour's worth and drove myself back to work. Again, I'm getting old, because back in 2002, I devoted a whole day for Apolo festivities (rally, Nike store to get the lowdown of his whereabouts, picked up Sonics tickets, attended the Sonics game because Apolo was there). Today, I had work. Blech!

Since I never had a younger brother, I'm claiming this boy as a family member. Ate Mina is proud of you, JR. Hopefully, in four years, the City will be devoting a whole day in honor of your continued success. I just hope that when I attend that rally, I'll be married and toting a kid around. ;P

See No Evil, Hear No Evil

During an impromptu meeting today between my direct supervisor and I about another topic:

"Hey, thanks for not lashing out at (insert biatch's name here) whenever she sends out her snippety e-mails."

My reply: "Yes, I know that I'm better than that."

Naks! A week or two ago, The Biatch tried to be a smart ass about something, but was totally wrong so I sent her a polite e-mail and CCed my direct supervisor and another one of my colleagues. The reply from The Biatch was anything, but polite so much so that my direct supervisor forwarded the whole e-mail trail to our higher up supervisor who wanted to make sure that I'm being supported, blah blah blah.

Apparently, everyone is aware of The Biatch from previous incidents. Who knew! I'm just glad that I'm not alone and that my ability to bite my tongue before sending an e-mail to The Biatch is noted. I'm also quite thankful that I don't have to deal with her everyday nor do I have to see her. It would really be a biatch to see The Biatch on a daily basis.

Loving the Job

Today, after some four weeks of starting my other part-time job, I finally took advantage of the various "amenities" available with working in Downtown Seattle: I shopped after work.

When I was living in Manila, going to Megamall, The Podium, or Shang after work was an every day thing. It was so convenient to grab dinner or to just drop by to buy my favorite hopia because the malls were down the street from my building. Well, it's the same situation for me these days. Shops, restaurants, movie theaters, oh my! And with my ORCA card (bus pass, for you non-Seattle-ites), I don't have to worry about parking at all.

I swear, there are so many pluses that comes with this job. The only thing that would make it the best thing ever is if it becomes full-time, but that would just be icing on the cake.

Girls Just Want to Have Fun

I remember once when Pen was telling me that she bought slacks at Gap for $20 and I thought it was too expensive. That's only because I've found them to be $10 or less at Gap Outlet for the same quality. Shorts for $.97? Why, I have them in five different colors, thanks to Old Navy.

I used to agree with people that buying clothes in the Philippines is quite cheap, but I don't think so anymore. Can you find shorts for P100 in the Philippines? Never! Besides, the clothes at tiangges lack the quality for them to be called "great buys."

I didn't do anything, but shop this weekend. Clearance items at Gap Outlet were 30% off, plus I had a coupon for an additional 20% off. Plus I still had a $20 reward coupon that I received awhile back for converting my Gap card to Gap Silver. Basically, half of my stuff were free. I also found this awesome navy blue semi-formal dress at Banana Republic Factory Store for $27 (originally $110) which I can wear at Anton's wedding this spring. You can really replace your wardrobe when sales like these come up during the end of each season. And since madaling mapagsawaan ang mga gamit, I don't want to spend a lot on clothes anymore. Back in college, I wouldn't think twice about buying Abercrombie stuff every month, but these days, no thanks. Mas masakit pa when I took my clothes to Goodwill knowing that I barely wore them and were just giving them away kasi wala na akong space sa closet.

Whoever buys clothes at regular prices are crazy (or genuinely rich). I find it much funner when I find great bargains unexpectedly. I used to hate sorting through racks, but have made peace with it. Actually, it's not so bad if it's Gap Outlet or Banana Republic because at least they sort the madness by color. Old Navy, umm, I just go there kapag bored ako and trying to kill time because you really have to be in a certain frame of mind when you're sifting through their dump (and that's why probably no staff ever arranges their clearance sections!).

I also went to the mall today because I had to buy shampoo and visit the Apple Store and realized that it has been a long time since I've stepped into a mall...and my closet reflects that fact.

Happy Holidays Indeed

It's not 2010 yet, but blessings are pouring in already! Today was sooo good. I don't want to jinx anything so I'll reveal these wonderful news next week. :)

Pinoy Food

I decided to check out the only sit-down Pinoy restaurant in South Seattle: KawaliGrill. I ordered the Pandan Fried Chicken since it was the only thing that had a picture on their website. It was panko-crusted chicken breasts with sweet chili sauce. I barely tasted the pandan since it was more likely overpowered by the sweet chili sauce. Honestly, I think I could've made this at home. However, the serving was huge and it was a nice change from the usual "karinderia" set-up.

Whenever I watch Adobo Nation, I always think, "Man, if only we could have that restaurant in Seattle!" Can you imagine if we had a Gerry'sGrill here? Oh my gulay! Heaven! Actually, if we only had Jollibee here, I think I'd be content with living in this city. *SIGH.

Heroes

I stayed up last night to watch Probe Profiles (which is just a copycat of Ces Drilon's Pipol, IMHO). Am I the only one who thinks that Efren Penafl0rida isn't that bad looking? And his English is actually pretty good based on his CNN Heroes speech. If I were still in Pinas, I'd totally hook him up with one of my WV co-workers.

Cars Go Vroom

I will think twice about getting my car repairs done at my local Honda dealership from now on. Apparently, my CV boots are still in working order and does not warrant an emergency replacement unlike what two local dealerships told me when I brought my car in for an oil change and timing belt replacement respectively. Today, I brought my car in at an independent auto car service shop and they actually showed me the parts in question when they had my car hoisted up in the air. When do dealerships ever do that for me?!

I did get my muffler replaced since it was rotted out, but didn't pay the price that the dealer quoted me. Plus, my car was washed and vacuumed after the service in addition to them rotating my tires for free. That's Service with a capital S. And after all that, I didn't feel cheated like I usually do after bringing my car in at one of the dealerships. I hope everyone finds that auto service shop that they can trust wherever they live; it's definitely a lifesaver. Should you live in the Seattle/Bellevue area, let me know and I'll direct you to one. :)

Black Friday Party Pooper

Despite my week-long anticipation for Black Friday, I didn't buy anything today except for my Coffee Prince DVD Boxset (and did it simply so that I can quit obsessing about buying it). No DSLR nor my Apple Airport Base Station. I guess I'm definitely living up to my "Oplan Bawas". Or maybe, I'm still feeling the $600 dent in my pocket from the timing belt replacement last week and pending $500 CV boots replacement for my car. Hay, growing up is not fun!

There's Something About You, Baby

I watched This Is It yesterday on IMAX. Ever since the night of MJ's death when all the news channels showed the footage of the last rehearsal, I've been wanting to know who the backup dancers were. How lucky can one be to have been given that chance to be on the same stage! Regardless of what could've been, it still happened for all of them!



And what? My favorite one is half-Filipino. I knew there was something about him! :)

People make fun of those in reality dance shows because there's always someone crying. Having been a dancer, I've shed one too many tears, too. I remember back in high school after a State competition, my whole team bawled our eyes out because we screwed up the ending of our performance. When you put so much time and energy in something, it hurts a lot when you don't get the outcome you were aiming for and that's why I love dancers: they have so much passion for the craft and so much heart in all of them. They're out there doing what they love to do. Ask any dancer and for sure they're not going to complain about their job unlike corporate folks who whine about every single day of their working life.

Why I never pursued the profession, I'll never know. But I'm glad that two of the local Seattle dancers that I've taken a class from and/or been around with are now doing their thang in Hollywood. How inspiring!

Someday

Korina married at 45 years old. May pag-asa pa ako! Kids, maybe not, but when you're at that age, I think you'd be content with finding The One.

But my fave wedding vow of all time is definitely from Mr. BlobyBlo himself, Tablo, who got married yesterday:

I think you are my echo. When I first met you, I thought that it was as if all of the things I had shouted out into the world before knowing you had come back to me in your form.

Got me right here. I think we all have our desires/requirements/hopes regarding what kind of a person we would like to end up with for the rest of our life and we want nothing more than to meet that ONE person who would make all of our dreams come to life. Nasaan ang echo ko? (No, not that Echo.)

Yes, I'm in my senti/tag-lamig lovey-dovey mode. Where the hell is my kumot and unan? ;P

Hairdid

Oh snap, Arnel Pineda finally cut his Sadako-inspired hair! Hooray! Totally an upgrade! He definitely looks more malinis and people can see more of his tiny face. Leave those long tresses to people who need to hide their ugly face, Arnel! Kudos!

In Search of Promdi Piolo

I started re-watching "Sa Piling Mo". I finished the 4-hour-long first disc in one sitting and cried once during each 30-minute episode. This series contains too many of my love frustrations that crying my heart out is quite therapeutic. HaHa! And what, a promdi Piolo as the lead?! He had me at hello!

And since this was my first time watching the series on Johnny Bravia HDTV, I found out that the quality of these DVDs are awesome. So clear and very HD-like. Totally beats all the Star Cinema movies on DVD that always appear grainy.

Expect me to bundle up while finishing the series this taglamig season. It's so nice to have a break from reading English subtitles. :)

Storing My Treasures

For the past two months, I've been worrying about how I was going to get my overdue World Vision Philippines child sponsorship funds to them. I didn't want to fill out the sponsorship form and mail in my credit card information because the risk of the mail getting lost was too great. I didn't have a scanner so I couldn't just e-mail the form with all the details.

Today, I realized that when I fill out the online sponsorship form and submit it, it takes me to an online credit card payment system similar to PayPal. Duh, self, duh! After my payment went through, you would've thought that I won the lottery: muntik na akong magtatalon sa tuwa. Geez, all that stressing for nothing.

And since I just told you how easy it is to sponsor a child, I'd like to invite you to do so. For only Php7,200/year, you can change the future of one child. That's only about $12.50/month!

I decided to be a child sponsor after the annual WV all-staff-retreat in 2006 (surprisingly, the WV-International staff were allowed to participate for the first time). At that event, the annual report was displayed. Now I've seen many annual reports, but this one struck a chord because the stats and figures displayed were about how many children had sponsors. It wasn't about who sold the most products or how much money the company made. No, it was about how many lives were being transformed that year. Along with that, there was a ceremony for the employees who have been with the organization for 5 all the way to 25+ years of service. Despite their salaries, they stayed with the organization year after year because they believed in the mission statement. I can't do what they're doing, but I definitely can support their work.

Since 2006, I've been sponsoring a girl in Aklan. Every year, I've been getting a picture and progress report plus a handwritten letter from her. I'm glad to be able to share my blessings and store my "treasures" in someone rather than something.

And in case you still don't believe in the power of sponsoring a child, Efren Penaflorida, one of CNN's Top 10 Heroes nominees, was a former WV sponsored child. Today, he's changing the lives of others himself.

I hope that everyone I know can sponsor a Filipino child. Regardless of our situation, I know that by far we are still richer than most of our kababayans in the Philippines. Sana we can invest our money in them rather than material things na napapagsawaan ng madalian.

Cue music with matching swaying: "...Heal the world...make it a better place..."

Oh My, Ondoy

Talk about the news hitting home.

I'm always skeptic about what I see in the news because things often get exaggerated, but when I saw all the news footage of Marikina and San Mateo, I got goosebumps because I know exactly where all those places are and I know how just a simple rain shower can fill those streets with water so what more with the kind of rainfall that they got yesterday.

I'm not too worried about my own relatives (that ancestral home in particular can handle anything), but I know many friends living in almost every single place mentioned in the news and all those friends of my cousins that we used to drop off in Cainta after gimiks. Sana safe kayong lahat!

I also hope that Lilian got home safely from Vietnam. Buti na lang hindi ako nakasama sa business trip niya; otherwise, siguradong umiiyak na ako ngayon. I'm sure World Vision PH will also be mobilizing people to help out the victims; will pray for all of you.

Design Me

After doing the dresses and barongs/tuxes for the StarMagicBall2009, FrancisLibiran is doing a dress and barong for my cousin Ryan's wedding next month.

Puwede bang invited siya sa wedding? I swear, I'll fly home kung nandoon siya. HaHa! God, why oh why are all the badings in this world so gwapo? *SIGH.

Who Touches My Skin

If you ever want to see me with the most painful look on my face, stick me in the aisle where all the facial products are in Target or Wal-mart. Can the world be any more difficult for a woman?

I've always been blessed with great skin. All the zits I got in high school can be counted on two hands. But that all changed when I lived in the Philippines and roamed around S.E. Asia: sun spots and various skin blemishes that probably only Dr. VickiBelo can name have all appeared. And perhaps, my apathy for putting greasy stuff on my skin at night also contributed to the demise of my baby smooth skin (naks!).

So finally, I decided to finally lather up to the best of my abilities and ventured on down to my nearest facial care aisle...only to look like a deer caught in headlights. It would've been fine if it was just a matter of picking a brand, but no, that would've been too easy. For each brand, there were several lines of products. I was there holding four different night cremes for the same brand. To make matters worse, what if you need the benefits of each line? Like what if you need anti-aging, regenerating, VitaminE+Aloe+VitaminB, and for sensitive skin potion? What do you do? What the *bleep do you do?! Why couldn't they just make one night creme with all these benefits and call it a day...err, night?!

And now, I truly believe that the beauty industry is a multi-billion industry. Why do these lotions cost an arm and a leg?! Even Pen raised an eyebrow when I pondered about buying Shiseid0 products to appease my desire of using products meant for Asian skin. Total price tag for a day moisturizer, toner, and night creme? Roughly $150. Goodness, that's a year's worth of child sponsorship for W0rld Vision!

If someone wants to send me BeloEssentials products to try out, my mailbox is always open for such gifts. :)

Yummy Yummy Veggie

Why is it that when I'm eating Korean food, eating/finishing my vegetables is an easy feat? I managed to eat all of my banchan, which consisted of mostly vegetables, today with my kalbi plate. Yum! I also had a new Korean discovery: roasted corn tea. Really good! Hmm, perhaps being a vegetarian is a possibility if ever I move to Korea. :)