Good day to be out

At Track 3oth @BGC. Photo by CallMeCreation.com

The girls had been cooped up for so long that they pestered me about going out today. But first I needed to cook brunch because I was not really sure if the kids can eat at a restaurant even if it’s al fresco.

Lugaw is essential. Photo by CallMeCreation.com

I was supposed to make this into arroz caldo but I forgot to defrost the chicken so it’s just plain lugaw with boiled eggs. Still good though.

Then I tended to my garden. I had to relocate some plants because the heat at noon is too intense for them.

The wilted hanging plants under the shade of the mango tree. Photo by CallMeCreation.com
Happy mums. Photo by CallMeCreation.com
My roses in that big planter are almost dying . Photo by CallMeCreation.com

So some of my roses are again victims of the neighborhood feral cats because they kept digging the soil to poop. I have sprayed the area with perfumed disinfectant so drive them away but it wasn’t enough. I need lemon and orange peels to assault their strong sense of smell. Then I placed the marigolds beside the dying roses to provide protection and shade. I’m still trying to revive them. My humic fertilizers I ordered online will soon be arriving. Roses, please hang on! Meanwhile, my wire mesh from Shopee arrived and attached them to the wall. I’m waiting for my hanging planters to arrive, also from Shopee, that I will hang on the grid and so the feral cats won’t be able to reach the plants that I will be putting there.

I was multitasking today. While doing my hobby, I was doing chores like washing stuffed toys using the mini washing machine because we would be giving those to the orphanage in Manila. I would be sending several kilos of powdered milk and the stuffed toys via Grab tomorrow. The toys now are almost as good as new.

As I thought, the girls were not allowed to enter Bonifacio High Street (they required vaccination cards before entering; of course the girls still don’t have it) so I just ordered Starbucks donuts and a giant cookie with frappucinos to go.

Sinful. Photo by CallMeCreation.com

Then we plopped on the grass at Track 30th because that’s the only place where kids are allowed. Twin I was put out that she couldn’t ride a bike around BGC because we didn’t bring any bike. Besides, I couldn’t bike with her because of abdominal cramps (red days). I told her we’ll bring our bikes next week. You see, the only safe places now for them are UP Diliman and BGC and they’re getting tired of UP campus so that leaves BGC as the only option. On top of that, you can’t really stay inside UP campus if you’re not exercising; they’re discouraging people to linger as part of their anti-covid protocols.

Sunset on the grass. Photo by CallMeCreation.com
Watching kids riding their scooters. Photo by CallMeCreation.com

We walked around some more for a bit of exercise because we had been sedentary for a loooooooooooong time.

Families with kids enjoying the afternoon in a grassy vacant lot near Dean and Deluca. Photo by CallMeCreation.com
Another day is dying in the city. I don’t know how long we will still be trapped in this concrete jungle. Photo by CallMeCreation.com

Perhaps when I’m fed up working at home, I’ll just go to BGC and station myself in one coffee shop around the area to work. I have three stories to write and I need to get out of my box to be motivated to write those. I remember that I used to work a lot in BGC–at Starbucks inside Fullybooked in Bonifacio High Street, Starbucks beside Pancake House and at Bo’s Coffee, also at Bonifacio High Street–when I felt a little bit claustrophobic in Ayala in Makati. That was before the pandemic. Since I’ve been stuck here in this room for two years, I think it’s about time I change my venue.

On the way back home, we stopped by Jjangkke to buy the spicy chicken that I’ve been hankering after since last night. Finally, one parking slot was open and I was able to get my chicken!

Yummy! Photo by CallMeCreation.com

What to do tomorrow?

PMS craving and CNY plans

Photo by CallMeCreation.com

After visiting Quezon City Circle this afternoon to buy more flowers, I suddenly craved for spicy Korean chicken. But the parking area at Jjangkke was full so I had to go to the Korean mart near my apartment to satisfy my craving for something spicy without having to cook.

So instead I got myself spicy fish cakes and spicy egg rolls. Bought the girls gimbap and hopang. I then cooked tonkatsu ramen from my stash of Japanese groceries.

Photo by CallMeCreation.com
Photo by CallMeCreation.com

My PMS is fueling my cravings. I have to have that spicy chicken tomorrow. 🌶️

While we were at Yong Korean Mart, Twin I and I checked out new items in their shelves and saw this:

Peach oolong. Photo by CallMeCreation.com

I’ll try this Peach oolong next month after I get clearance from my doctor that I can take caffeinated drinks. My sleep hours are still messy and I had a horrible headache this lunch that I had to sleep it off.

Next week will be slow so the following days would be devoted to making the front of my house pretty. I can probably go to Dapitan for some garden accessories.

I have no idea what we will do this year while still under Alert level 3 (and unvaccinated children are still not allowed anywhere). For Chinese new year in 2020, we went to Rizal to visit Angono, Morong, and Tanay. Last year, we went to Binangonan to watch a beautiful sunset.

For this year perhaps we’ll just drive somewhere in Rizal, like Daranak Falls? The girls went spelunking and kayaking to reach the caves in their dad’s province last Christmas so hiking to the falls will not be a big deal.

I need to get out!

Lunar New Year

At SM Marikina. Photo by CallMeCreation.com

I’m running out of time trying to finish a long piece before the whole of Asia goes on holiday for the Lunar New Year. People in Hong Kong and Malaysia will be slowing down tomorrow and everyone will be off the entire week next week.

I haven’t been really productive as I should have been because I’m always sleepy during the day. I woke up at 5 am today after sleeping at around past 3 am to cook breakfast. Ate C was sick after getting her booster shot so I had to take over.

Slept at 6 am again then got woken up at 7 because the cats kept opening my door (since it’s broken, it had no resistance). I desperately wanted a quick shuteye so I threw out the cats, stuck something to my door so they can’t push it, and slept. But work beckoned at 9 am. 😕

Enough is enough. I went to SM Marikina this evening to buy a barrel lock, some door handles, wood glue and other stuff.

It’s ugly AF but it does the job. Photo by CallMeCreation.com

That should keep out the cats. I’ll solve the ugliness later.

During the small hours that I’m awake, I try to make myself fall asleep by thinking of projects I must do. One of those times I thought about removing my piano setup near the stairs and replace it with some drawers to corral my kids’ stuff that overflowed from their small study area.

Now it’s neater. That painting above was done by my sister. Photo by CallMeCreation.com

Bike helmets, shopping bags, and cat supplies are also stuffed in there.

And of course, my cats have started to claim the area as their own.

Photo by CallMeCreation.com
Photo by CallMeCreation.com

Now I need to go to Mr DIY again for fake indoor plants/flowers. Because cats.

Almost real carbonara

Photo by CallMeCreation.com

I cooked carbonara for dinner last night using the near-authentic recipe. I didn’t have the Italian guanciale so I used the closest thing: pork that is used to make bacon.

I fried the pork in its own fat while I whisked 4 eggs with hard cheddar cheese (I didn’t have a block of parmesan; I had mozzarella but that’s too soft). When the pork fat was rendered, I turned the heat down and combined the spaghetti with the pork and coated it with the little oil that came out. When everything was coated, I turned off the heat and added the eggs with cheese. I made sure the eggs did not curdle and come out like scrambled eggs. When the egg-cheese combination made the pasta creamy, I immediately served it to my waiting customers.

They liked it. It’s less heavy compared to the bastardized version of carbonara with cream, butter and bell peppers.

Add ground pepper for a little bit of ooomph.

Later, I played this on my mobile phone:

Because I wanted to be brainless.

I have two analysis pieces to rewrite 🤦🏻‍♀️. And couple of more leads to follow up. My poaching of journos are always unsuccessful. Either they’re jumping to VC firms or they just wanna stay put because chasing deals from USD 5m to infinity is not their cup of tea.

It’s hard to recruit people in non-English-speaking markets!!!

One of these days I’ll turn to RPGs to decompress. Buy a Nintendo Switch and play Legend of Zelda.

Or live in Anilao and jump into the sea when I feel stressed.


WTF! It’s 6 am and I’m still awake. How am I going to work today?!

I need to sleeeeeep. 😴

Daylight. Photo by CallMeCreation.com

Refreshing

woman filling job application form in office with boss
Photo by Sora Shimazaki on Pexels.com

I did an interview this morning with a CEO of a private equity firm and it was a refreshing one-hour conversation about investment strategies, industry talk–all the things that other people don’t care about but I find interesting. It pulled me out of this funk that I am in and this made me want to write the story immediately. But I had to attend to more pressing matters first (like pending edits and emails).

His story of why he is doing what he is doing and what made him start was inspiring. He said it started with curiosity and having the guts to jump into a plane and see what was out there. He believes more in the gut feel of an entrepreneur than the dictates of the “guys in a suit” (a.k.a. the MBAs, the finance guys).

This what keeps me going. The stories. The good stories.


Ok there’s a breaking story that I had to react to and I had to email a couple of people regarding this breaking news. I might be writing late into the night because of this.


So this CEO was telling me, it’s curiosity that propelled him to become an entrepreneur–which is so far from his background of bio-engineering from MIT. Meanwhile, it is my natural curiosity and need for answers that propelled me to become a journalist. The same traits but different paths. He became rich while I’m still a “starving artist”. Would I have it any other way? I don’t know. Maybe I won’t be as happy. It’s my creative passions that move me while this other person is moved by the art of deal-making and proving a point.

It’s the breaking stories (like the one I mentioned above) that keep my adrenaline pumping. I’m completely wired differently and maybe that’s what frustrates other people.


Geez, here I am, working on US Eastern time again, firing away emails at almost 9 pm. Being an annoying journalist at weird hours. Working some stuff that would allow me to fly to Bangkok in July. IF I CAN.

Halved

close up shot of white smoke
Photo by Marek Piwnicki on Pexels.com

I’m in this very weird state since the middle of January where I feel like my soul is torn in half and one half lives in a different time zone. I still can’t get my body clock fixed so I only fall asleep when there’s already daylight peeking through my curtains. I work in weird time shifts. I know it’s impolite but I only get to reply to emails at night. I start editing in the afternoon; I catch on sleep at daytime. And I don’t even have caffeinated drinks at all.

This is utterly weird.

I don’t know if I’m keeping Mumbai or London time. Sometimes it’s worse, it’s like US Eastern time. This always makes me feel tired and unproductive.

Where is my other half wandering? I need to pull it back and keep myself whole.

And I’m also in this confusing stage right now where I suddenly want to postpone building my flat to stay here in Quezon City longer. I want to stay away from family. I don’t know why I’m in this funk. It’s like I’m missing something.


But things are changing. My girl, Twin I, is already a lady. She had her first menstrual period last week. Her way of thinking is also has matured and it’s like I’m already talking to an adult mini-me. I have to move so that my girls can have more independence without sacrificing their safety.

I don’t know, I’m really confused. I really have to get my other half back from wandering around so I can make logical decisions and not half-assed ones based on feelings. Screw feelings.


This entire weekend was stressful due to politics. I should refrain from opening my Facebook and Twitter accounts to avoid these stressors.

Because this coward, according to my industry grapevine, demanded advance questions before agreeing to a panel interview. All other presidential aspirants (except for Ka Leody de Guzman, who was not invited) were ok with the interview without knowing what questions would be asked. This ball-less coward wanted a codigo (cheat sheet) because he is stupid. He doesn’t even have a platform. And he would look doubly stupid on national TV for stammering his way out of an interview asking him about his platforms, issues thrown by detractors, and questions of how is he going to solve pressing issues once he becomes president.

Of course, this journo wouldn’t agree to such arrangement. Even I would have thrown a fit at such demand.

As expected social media exploded with this issue; Marcos trolls went on overdrive and they went tearing down Leni. It was so stressful.

As every one knows, Marcos has an army of social media trolls working to prop him up and erase history since 2014.

Twitter Removes Hundreds of Accounts Linked to Philippines’ Marcos Jr.

The Diplomat

I keep up with news through Twitter, FB for community news. Dang, I have to avoid them. I should just keep to my Nikkei subscription, and probably Financial Times and The Economist.