bella

no, it's not bella the vampire. it's ate bella (pronounced a la bella flores, belya). she was our trusted kasambahay in the early 80s. she was a petite, fair-skinned woman. her hair was short and wavy. she was probably in her 20s then.

she was hyper! she cleaned the house like a mad girl. mommy and lola would scold her just so she would stop cleaning at the wee hours of the night (and day too). she even waxed and polished the stairs with a bunot! very dangerous! madulas! i remember one time she fell down the stairs - last few steps lang naman! i think she stopped polishing the floor after that makalaglag-pangang incident.

she was very popular because she called folk arts theater "prok eye" hehehe. that was so cute. we would ask her, "ate bella sama ka?" she would answer, "saan, sa prok eye?"

i remembered her this morning because i saw the scrub on the bathroom and i had an urge to scrub the floor. i didn't. i was late for work.

asan ka na kaya, ate bella?

for now

to my dear husband,

the past year hasn't been very good.  ok, it has been tough.  ok, it has been very, very, very tough.

remember this?  i was very excited then.  i even swore that we'll never be tangled in an LDR again, but look at us now.  we are back to zero, back to where we were a year ago.  we don't have to ask why.  this is the point where all we could afford is to look forward to better days, nights, and lifetime.

for now:

no more bus rides together.  this was taken when we went to the office-that-shall-not-be-named.  we were carrying a big bag of papers.  it was a long ride home, but it was a joyride.  you fell asleep because you were tired.  i love long rides with you!

i sleep with the lamp on now.  you know i'm matapang that way.  nobody accompanies me to late night trips to the toilet.  solution: i don't make late night trips to the toilet anymore.

no more room service of lucky me pancit canton when i'm working from home... complete with iced tea.  after i eat, you diligently collect the plates and glass.  tip-top room service.  serbisyong totoo.  kapuso na, kapamilya pa.

nobody shares an egg with me during breakfast.  i used to take the yolk (aka cholesterol), and you take the white part (aka protein).  now, an egg is all mine.  i'm not happy.

these are your 2 spots when you fetch me from the bus stop every night.  first stop is for bus 12, 21.  second is for 358, 17.  it's always a comforting sight to see you waiting each night.  sometimes, you sport a happy aura.  sometimes, when the boredom is that bad, you definitely look like you badly need a hug.  for the past two weeks, i still try to look for you each night.  maybe you might be there waiting for me.  so dramatic!  bongga!

no more wacky shots with keyla.  we both know it, keyla loves you!  

no more meriendate - our favorite prata.  cheese and mushroom for me, onions and egg for you.  happiness is cheap, if not free. :)

no more picture taking anywhere and everywhere.

no more occasionally unhealthy dates.

for now, my dear, for now.  i miss you.  i'll see you soon.  i'll see you when the execution of the most perfect plan takes place.

love,

your wife

liquid soap

i am fond of (read: addicted to) DIYs.  when i see something or taste something good, my first thoughts are always, "how do they do this?  how can i do this?"

ang next ko naming pinuntirya ay ang paggawa ng liquid soap.  hahaha!

a bottle of liquid body soap costs ~ 6 - 8 SGD.
a small bottle of hand wash costs ~ 2 SGD.
5 bar soaps cost ~ 4 SGD.
1 bar soap will yield 1.5 L of liquid soap that could be your body soap or hand wash.
so 5 bars of soap will yield 7.5 L of liquid soap!

please do the math of the savings.  i'm not good at it.

i really want to like regular body wash (ex: dove, johnson's, goat milk).  they smell really good.  the thing is, i have eczema that attacks me maybe once a year, so i have to stick to non harsh soaps like cetaphil (kaching kaching).  so i tried to do the liquid soap experiment with johnson's baby soap.

here's how i did it.  warning: poor documentation ahead.

1. grate 1 bar soap, then you'll have soap chips like this!

2. microwave a cup of water on high for 2 minutes.  

2.1 transfer the water in a good pitcher (one that can hold super hot water).

2.2 add 1/3 of the soap chips and stir like crazy until the chips melt (chopsticks work well as stirrers).

2.3 while you are stirring like a madman, microwave another cup of water.

2.4 repeat 2.2 and 2.3 until you have a total of 3 cups of water and all the soap chips are consumed.

leave the mixture to cool down for about an hour or more.  

once cold, the mixture will solidify - like a big block of soap.

add 2 cups (or 1.5 cups, depending on the mildness of the soap) of tap water and stir like crazy again.

transfer to dispensers.

that's it!  it's not really like the "real" liquid soaps.  this one's a bit like sipon in texture hahaha!  but hey, what's a bit of a slime if you could save a dime?  haha. labo.  i like how it's really mild too!  

even kuya does this with dettol or lifeguard, and he uses it as his body wash and hand wash.

no pic of the final "product".  sorry!  hehehe.

visita iglesia 2012

the whole season of lent went by in a breeze.  no pasyon, no silence, just abstinence from meat on fridays, and visita iglesia last good friday.

mike made the itinerary, complete with routes and bus numbers.  we read 2 stations of the cross for each church, 7 churches in all.

it was hard to take pictures of the altar because most of the churches were closed.  i took pictures of the grotto instead.  loved the grottos!

Church 1: Church of the Risen Christ

Church 2: Catholic Church of Christ the King

Church 3: Church of St. Francis Xavier

it was a long uphill journey from the bus stop to the church.  the church was small but, it felt very peaceful inside.

Church 4: Church of St. Vincent De Paul

this was where kuya and april got married, plus this was our parish church for a year - good memories.

Church 5: Immaculate Heart of Mary Church

Church 6: Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary

loved this site.  it looks very regal.

there's a big yard for the stations of the cross.  it's a very beautiful church.

Church 7: St. Anne's Church

this is my second visit to this church.  back in 2008, we also visited this church with the lingkod brothers/sisters.

last stop was dinner at 9:30  - prata, fish soup, rice with dilis at the suking hawker center beside divine mercy church.

bonus: our parish, divine mercy

the journey was great :)  more church visits in the coming years.