Giant dollhouses

One of the first things that I liked in the United States were their homes. First off, they are so cute, like giant dollhouses! The design of the houses are modern yet classic! Second, there are trees in most of residential areas. I love the color of green and the way it cools the houses. And third, which I found surprising, there were no fences! All that separated the houses were patches of green grass! I loved it (this will not work in the Philippines, I think). I mean, wouldn’t it be nice to have no fences between you and your neighbor? [Well, it might have disadvantages, like how would you escape your nosy neighbor?]

When I put up a house, I would like it to be patterned after the houses in the US, not because it’s “US” [if you know what I mean] but simply because I really find them cute!

My aunt’s apartment in San Francisco: just like a dollhouse!

My friend’s apartment in LA: big for a married couple!

The same house in LA: full of modern furniture

Houses in New Jersey are so cute, plus they are surrounded by trees! Beautiful!

Strawberry shake hangover

When we were in Los Angeles, I tasted the best, and I mean BEST, strawberry shake (I thought I’d be needing respironics oxygen concentrators because it was so delicious, I couldn’t breathe!). The clincher? It is home made. My friend Erwin made it for us.

Promise, it was so delicious! All you need are strawberries (of course), ice (duh, of course), sugar, a little cream, and vanilla ice cream. Perhaps you would want to try it for yourself, although it might not be as simple as it looks. My friend has mastered the amount of ingredients to put into the blender.

But there’s no harm in trying. Up to now, I’m still now over the strawberry shake, and I’d give anything to have this best strawberry shake again, even if it means trying to concoct it for myself. I guess it’s time for me to go to the supermarket and buy strawberries.

Disciplined driving

This morning, as I went into the car to go to work, the news that stumbled upon me was another accident in Cavite that left nine people dead (as of the news coverage). According to reports, the driver of a truck carrying LPG tanks was speeding and lost control of the truck, slamming into a canteen and killing these nine people (I hope they have life insurance leads). The driver fled.

And this is just a day after another accident also in Cavite, in which seven people died. Reports say that the driver of the SUV in this accident and most of the passengers were drunk.

Accidents like these leave me goosebumps because they could have been avoided. A little discipline is all we need. Do you really need to speed? Do you really need to race with other trucks? And what about drunk driving, is it not common sense to give up the wheel if you have had too much to drink? Buti sana if there are no other people involved. In the case of these accidents, at least 16 people died!

To all drivers, let’s have a little concern for ourselves and for other people. Let’s be disciplined drivers.

Vacation to get over a vacation

As I usually say, I need another vacation to get over my recent vacation! I guess my body is still yearning for rest, but more so because my mind is still in a vacation mode!

The question is where?

Primary considerations are budget, of course, and proximity (not really whether the hotels offer promotional pens).

Here is a short list of places I have in mind:

• Pagudpud
• Donsol
• Pagsanjan (Pagsanjan Falls)
• Corregidor

What do you think?

PS: My boss is going to kill me. However, I hope they know this is all tentative of course.

Dad’s day

I watched a small man with thick calluses on both hands work fifteen and sixteen hours a day. I saw him once literally bleed from the bottoms of his feet, a man who came here uneducated, alone, unable to speak the language, who taught me all I needed to know about faith and hard work by the simple eloquence of his example.
–Mario Cuomo

To all the dads in the world (be you be the quiet one or the strict one; the all-around one or the one who doesn’t even know what text door hanger printing is; or the one who spoils or the one who makes lives hard for your children), HAPPY FATHER’S DAY!

And let us not forget that we have one Father “up there” who loves us so much!

NBA fever

Today, here in the office, most men are nowhere to be seen!

No, there is no sale on Ferrari parts or an FHM model shoot somewhere!

It’s game 7 of the Lakers-Celtics championship match…and everyone is  caught in the NBA fever.

As I write this post, Boston is leading (halftime), and I know a lot of people (fans of Boston and LA alike) who will be at the edge of their seats for the next hour!

Although I am no fan of either team, I know how it feels like to be rooting for one…the nerve-wracking,  mind-freezing feeling of watching a game and waiting who will win. Sometimes, I can’t even watch and would prefer just to know the results. [I always feel that when I’m watching Federer.]

So there, I’ll be waiting for the shouts [and cries] in an hour!

PS: Off the record, although I’m neither a Lakers nor a Celtics fan, I don’t want the Lakers to win! He! He!

Brain cramps

Laughter can be one great fitness equipment. So here, let’s all have some good laugh! Enjoy!

Question:  If you could live forever, would you and Why?

Answer:  ”I would not live forever, because we should not
live forever, because if we were supposed to live forever,
then we would live forever, but we cannot live forever,
which is why I would not live forever,”

–Miss Alabama in the 1994 Miss USA contest.

*****

“Smoking kills. If you’re killed, you’ve lost a very
important part of your life,”

– Brooke Shields, during an interview to become
Spokesperson for federal anti-smoking campaign.

*****

“I’ve never had major knee surgery on any other part of my body,”    

–Winston Bennett,
University of Kentucky basketball forward.

*****

“Outside of the killings, Washington has one of the
lowest crime rates in the country,”

–Mayor Marion Barry, Washington, DC.

*****

“That lowdown scoundrel deserves to be kicked to death
by a jackass, and I’m just the one to do it,”

–A congressional candidate in Texas.

*****

“Half this game is ninety percent mental.”

–Philadelphia Phillies manager, Danny Ozark

*****

“It isn’t pollution that’s harming the environment. It’s
the impurities in our air and water that are doing it.”

“We are ready for an unforeseen event that
may or may not occur.”

–Al Gore, Vice President  

*****

“We’ve got to pause and ask ourselves: How much
clean air do we need?”  

–Lee Iacocca

*****

“We don’t necessarily discriminate. We simply exclude
certain types of people.”  

– Colonel Gerald Wellman, ROTC Instructor.

*****

“If we don’t succeed, we run the risk of failure.”

–Bill Clinton, President

*****

“Your food stamps will be stopped effective
March 1992 because we received notice that
you passed away. May God bless you. You may
reapply if there is a change in your circumstances.”

–Department of Social Services, Greenville, South Carolina

*****

“If somebody has a bad heart, they can plug this jack
in at night as they go to bed and it will monitor their
heart throughout the night. And the next morning, when
they wake up dead, there’ll be a record.”

–Mark S. Fowler, FCC Chairman

Fake La Nina?

I’m sure I’ve read somewhere that PAGASA has said that “El Nino is out; get ready for La Nina.”

So how come it’s still hot?

I was actually jumping for joy when, during my trip, I heard that it was raining in the Philippines. But I was so disappointed when I got back. Ten minutes in the airport and I was already perspiring.

I know that it rains often now, but I can’t help but notice that the weather hasn’t turned to cool yet! I still often find myself bathed in perspiration! Ok, that might be an exaggeration, but still, you get my point.

Come on cool weather, get out of your hibernation and bump of this sweltering heat!

I hope it’s not a fake La Nina!

Or is PAGASA pulling our legs [I’m calling a mesothelioma lawyer!]?