Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Month Past 12/01-12/31/08 (PacMan,Red Cross,Christmas)
Thu 12/04 was my day off. I thought I'd try my hands at cooking. Turns out I didn't need a fire. Checking the contents of our ref I saw some veggies that might rot before W arrives from Manila and a roasted chicken. I ended up doing a coleslaw and a chicken sandwich filling. I was itching on using the food processor. That inspired me to do it. Result: it's edible for me:) Now I'm thinking of using the slow cooker...mmm...I have to check what availble ingredients I have.
Sat 12/05 is the "Dream Fight" ofManny Pacquiao and Oscar dela Hoya .Turned out to be a nightmare for Oscar. The fight ended in Round 8 by a TKO when ODLH threw the towel before the bell sounded for Round 9. Some wags said he threw the fight. I doubt it. We have to give credit to The Man. Pacquiao was relentless and fast. He did his homework. He was lean and hungry. Although Oscar was richer. It's his Golden Boy promotions that ran the show. But after this fight, me thinks Pacman will have a say on the purse.
Mon 12/08 had our first "serious" snow. Later in the week chilly temps with wind chill is our regular fare. And it's not yet officially winter...not until Sun 12/21. Day before,Sat 12/20, it was preceded by a nasty snow. It was also W's office party. On my way home to pick up W I counted no less than 5 vehicles ditched at 35W (North & South). On our way to the party at Junbo Restaurant in Bloomington there was this car blocking one lane of I 169. The driver calling on his cell for help.
Tue 12/30 is Red Cross day for me. Time to donate blood. The weather forecasters failed this time. Miserably. The forecast was snow in the morning and taper off by noon. Just a few flurries in the morning. I said to myself that's nice. By noon nothing. So far so good. I like it when they make a wrong forecast for the better or so I thought. But by 1 or 2 p.m. heavy snow started to fall just in time for the rush hour. It was hard driving on my way to the Lutheran Church in Burnsville for the bloodletting. Road was slick and thick with snow. Everybody was talking about the weather when I got to the church. I heard an old guy commenting: " I told my wife why she bothers listening to the weather when all she has to do is look out the window and whatever she sees outside is the weather." Truly spoken by a man who has been let down by weather forecasters much too often... like today. Going home after the bloodletting, (which was a success although the attendant had to really poke on my vein as he said it's hard to find and the blood flow sluggish) after about two hours its still the same. No let up on the snow fall. Meaning I had to shovel when I got home...huff and puff, my hands are freezing, my nose is running and my breath is smokin'.
What is Christmas without Noche Buena? Pics below is the celebration at home with some of W's staff. The Filipino "IT community", at least in W's network, (those that W worked with since '96) has grown big and diverse (others now working in different companies) that Noche Buena is now celebrated at different homes. It used to be that there's only one venue.
Sat 12/05 is the "Dream Fight" of
Mon 12/08 had our first "serious" snow. Later in the week chilly temps with wind chill is our regular fare. And it's not yet officially winter...not until Sun 12/21. Day before,Sat 12/20, it was preceded by a nasty snow. It was also W's office party. On my way home to pick up W I counted no less than 5 vehicles ditched at 35W (North & South). On our way to the party at Junbo Restaurant in Bloomington there was this car blocking one lane of I 169. The driver calling on his cell for help.
Tue 12/30 is Red Cross day for me. Time to donate blood. The weather forecasters failed this time. Miserably. The forecast was snow in the morning and taper off by noon. Just a few flurries in the morning. I said to myself that's nice. By noon nothing. So far so good. I like it when they make a wrong forecast for the better or so I thought. But by 1 or 2 p.m. heavy snow started to fall just in time for the rush hour. It was hard driving on my way to the Lutheran Church in Burnsville for the bloodletting. Road was slick and thick with snow. Everybody was talking about the weather when I got to the church. I heard an old guy commenting: " I told my wife why she bothers listening to the weather when all she has to do is look out the window and whatever she sees outside is the weather." Truly spoken by a man who has been let down by weather forecasters much too often... like today. Going home after the bloodletting, (which was a success although the attendant had to really poke on my vein as he said it's hard to find and the blood flow sluggish) after about two hours its still the same. No let up on the snow fall. Meaning I had to shovel when I got home...huff and puff, my hands are freezing, my nose is running and my breath is smokin'.
What is Christmas without Noche Buena? Pics below is the celebration at home with some of W's staff. The Filipino "IT community", at least in W's network, (those that W worked with since '96) has grown big and diverse (others now working in different companies) that Noche Buena is now celebrated at different homes. It used to be that there's only one venue.
Left: Photo op before the feast
Right: Show your San Miguel Beer in Minnesota
Wed 12/31 New Year's Eve we had to go to two venues. The De Guzman's and Salay's.
Left: The De Guzman family: Dante, Lydia and their two sons
Center: The guests
Bottom Right: At the Salay's. Jay's mom also celebrating her birthday on New Year's Eve.
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Month Past 11/01-11/30/08(DST Ends,Election,Thanksgiving)
Sun 11/02 Daylight Saving Time Ends. Set all your clocks back one hour. You do that Sat evening so you gain an extra hour of sleep. Or so we thought. But most people stay up late knowing they have that extra hour to sleep. Like moi. 'Tis the season of long nights, shorter days... it'll be cold and dark...when you leave for work and when you go home from work... you and your neighbors will seldom see each other on the streets...we hibernate just like every creature on earth
Tue 11/04 is the day of reckoning. It's Election Day. Finally we're done with all those campaign ads on TV. The mudslinging and half truths. It's a record for the voters turnout. Early, early Wed 11/05 Obama was declared the winner. History was made. The first African-American...his campaign shibboleth "it's time for a Change"...very apt. How you wish the Philippines would have the same quick count. Alas, we can only dream, pray, hope wish, desire...because those who are entrusted to make it into reality, especially the candidates, would want it otherwise. How else can they call their Doctors to "cure" votes before, during and at the last possible moment. "Hello Garci" can you hear me now?
Thu 11/20 took W to the airport for her flight to Manila. She'll be gone for almost a month : (. It'll be business and personal trip. She 's one of the godparents on her staff's (Marc and Pearl) wedding. Have the house to myself again. Another reprise of All Quiet on the Western Front.
Thu 11/27 is Thanksgiving Day. Spent it quietly at home. Heated a boxed pizza for dinner. I was invited for a Thanksgiving dinner at Rosemount by W's staff Chev but I did not feel like going out. It's late, cold, a bit of a drive and I have to work early following day. I really appreciate the invite but had to RSVP.
Tue 11/04 is the day of reckoning. It's Election Day. Finally we're done with all those campaign ads on TV. The mudslinging and half truths. It's a record for the voters turnout. Early, early Wed 11/05 Obama was declared the winner. History was made. The first African-American...his campaign shibboleth "it's time for a Change"...very apt. How you wish the Philippines would have the same quick count. Alas, we can only dream, pray, hope wish, desire...because those who are entrusted to make it into reality, especially the candidates, would want it otherwise. How else can they call their Doctors to "cure" votes before, during and at the last possible moment. "Hello Garci" can you hear me now?
Thu 11/20 took W to the airport for her flight to Manila. She'll be gone for almost a month : (. It'll be business and personal trip. She 's one of the godparents on her staff's (Marc and Pearl) wedding. Have the house to myself again. Another reprise of All Quiet on the Western Front.
Thu 11/27 is Thanksgiving Day. Spent it quietly at home. Heated a boxed pizza for dinner. I was invited for a Thanksgiving dinner at Rosemount by W's staff Chev but I did not feel like going out. It's late, cold, a bit of a drive and I have to work early following day. I really appreciate the invite but had to RSVP.
Friday, October 31, 2008
Month Past 10/01-10/31/08(Gas Price,Anniv,Max)
Sun 10/05 W is back from Arkansas. That's where she went straight from our Arizona vacation.Picked her up from the airport. Then took her back to the airport on Tue 10/07 for her flight to Manila.
Gas price is going down. Fri 10/10 it was at $2.75 . It's the only good news from this dismal economy. Wed 10/15 it was at $2.57 (imagine at $3.70 to almost $4.00 about a month ago). After a week 10/22 it was at $2.36. By the 29th it was at $2.07. You save on gas but your investments are going down the drain.
Thu 10/16 I noticed that one of the large trees in our backyard fell right in the path walk blocking it. We've been experiencing strong winds these past few days. I was not mistaken that I heard a loud thud one early evening. I thought some heavy object fell in one of the rooms but I can't place it. I also mowed the lawn and started tying red ribbons to mark the maple tree saplings in our backyard so we won't cut it next year's spring when we do our "clearing". Took some pics of what's left of the fall colors.
Sun 10/19 I noticed that one of the apple tree bore its first fruit. A small one. Perhaps pre mature as shown in the pic below.
Tue 10/21 we celebrated our 22nd (phenomenal) anniversary by dining out at Red Lobster restaurant in Burnsville. We made sure that we get there before six or else we have to wait at least 15 minutes to be seated. We tried their on going promo of eat all you can shrimp. They had about five different ways of cooking it and tried all of them. Burp...there goes the weighing scale.
Sat 10/25 the fall leaves has accumulated. Tired of raking it I decided to mow the lawn for the last time this year in preparation for the winter and bag the cuttings. Took the 4:30 anticipated mass in Farmington so we would be able to visit our friend Eileen and her husband Max who suffered a stroke sometime Sep 28 while we were in AZ.
The Dr said he was lucky (another term for a miracle) that the memory side of his brain was not affected. We've been trying to get in touch with them since we arrived from Arizona after Eileen got hold of W informing us of what happened. Their answering machine is always full. Finally this Sat we got lucky and Eileen picked up the phone. Max was kind enough to allow us to visit him. Eileen said he's been refusing visitors lately.
On our way home from the visit we dropped by Movie Gallery near our former home where I used to buy pre-viewed DVD's. I told W I'll check it out if they have any good sale. There's also a pizza place beside it called Ted's Pizza. Sadly, we noticed that it closed down. Another victim of a troubled economy. Their pizza was good. It had a flavor of it's own. Across is a small bar and restaurant called the Ugly Mug. Good for the owner they are still thriving.
Sun 10/26 we got winter's appetizer. It was windy, cold and flurries. Good thing that we attended mass and visited Max day before. It's not a nice day going out. So I bled our outdoor faucets to prepare it for winters' freezing temps. Brrrrrr...five months and counting...
Gas price is going down. Fri 10/10 it was at $2.75 . It's the only good news from this dismal economy. Wed 10/15 it was at $2.57 (imagine at $3.70 to almost $4.00 about a month ago). After a week 10/22 it was at $2.36. By the 29th it was at $2.07. You save on gas but your investments are going down the drain.
Thu 10/16 I noticed that one of the large trees in our backyard fell right in the path walk blocking it. We've been experiencing strong winds these past few days. I was not mistaken that I heard a loud thud one early evening. I thought some heavy object fell in one of the rooms but I can't place it. I also mowed the lawn and started tying red ribbons to mark the maple tree saplings in our backyard so we won't cut it next year's spring when we do our "clearing". Took some pics of what's left of the fall colors.
Sun 10/19 I noticed that one of the apple tree bore its first fruit. A small one. Perhaps pre mature as shown in the pic below.
Tue 10/21 we celebrated our 22nd (phenomenal) anniversary by dining out at
Sat 10/25 the fall leaves has accumulated. Tired of raking it I decided to mow the lawn for the last time this year in preparation for the winter and bag the cuttings. Took the 4:30 anticipated mass in Farmington so we would be able to visit our friend Eileen and her husband Max who suffered a stroke sometime Sep 28 while we were in AZ.
The Dr said he was lucky (another term for a miracle) that the memory side of his brain was not affected. We've been trying to get in touch with them since we arrived from Arizona after Eileen got hold of W informing us of what happened. Their answering machine is always full. Finally this Sat we got lucky and Eileen picked up the phone. Max was kind enough to allow us to visit him. Eileen said he's been refusing visitors lately.
On our way home from the visit we dropped by Movie Gallery near our former home where I used to buy pre-viewed DVD's. I told W I'll check it out if they have any good sale. There's also a pizza place beside it called Ted's Pizza. Sadly, we noticed that it closed down. Another victim of a troubled economy. Their pizza was good. It had a flavor of it's own. Across is a small bar and restaurant called the Ugly Mug. Good for the owner they are still thriving.
Sun 10/26 we got winter's appetizer. It was windy, cold and flurries. Good thing that we attended mass and visited Max day before. It's not a nice day going out. So I bled our outdoor faucets to prepare it for winters' freezing temps. Brrrrrr...five months and counting...
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Month Past 09/01-09/30/08 (Financial Crisis,Arizona)
Mon 09/01 is Labor Day. I remember my first year in the Yu Hes Ey. I was befuddled that Labor Day is celebrated on Sept 1. If you've been celebrating Labor Day every 1st day of May for forty five years you'll have the impression that it was observed internationally on the same date. Anyways I had my day off and so did W. So off we went to Menard's to shop for garden materials like the pavers. W noticed that the garden solar lights she had her eyes on have been given additional discount thereby convincing me that we purchase it lest next time we come back it'll be gone. A dutiful spouse that I'am I said ok. Had lunch at King's Buffet then headed home to install the lights and pavers.
Thu 09/04 I did another "honeydue" task. Assembled the lounge chair for the three season porch. A friend who frequents the Mystic Lake casino gave us a $0.25 per gallon gas coupon discount that would expire the following day. There were about 5 coupons and the gas station was just at the end of our street. So W gave the other coupons to our neighbors. Funny thing is I decided to gas up early evening and while doing so an old Asian woman at the opposite pump approached me and gave me another coupon. I thanked her for it. I guess the promo was only good until the following day and those with extra coupons still in their hands were giving it away. With the price of gasoline we'll take whatever discount we can get. Alas I just had to throw it.
Sun 09/07 W and I worked on my side of "garden project". It would be our last garden work for this year. I was not able to finish my side as I still really can't envision how I want it to look. Just set the pavers and see what happens. Now that most plants are on sale W's been asking me if I want this or that plant to be on the garden. And I say okay or whatever if it's really cheap. We'll see how it turns out.
Sun 09/14 after mass we had brunch at Applebee's then to Home Depot and bought their patio chairs and table set for a bargain and a fire stand at Lowe's for a discount.
Wed 09/17 is not a good day for the economy. It has been so for the past days. But all that news about Lehman's Bear Stearns and bailouts of AIG, Freddie Mac, Fanny Mae brings with it a doom and gloom scenario. You just keep on wishing that everything will be fine before it hits you where it hurts. Then Mon 9/29 it happened. Stocks plummeted. My 401K took a big hit. Think about those retirees. We were still in Arizona vacationing when I saw the news on TV.
Sat 09/20 because I had to work Sun and I'm not getting off work until 6:00 Sat I checked on the yellow pages the churches' mass schedule near our place. Lo and behold I found one that has an anticipated mass at 7:00 pm. So I called W and told her I'll pick her up after work to catch the mass atThe Church of St Mary of the Purification at Shakopee. It's a small church in a small community. About fifteen minutes drive from our house. As fate would have it the priest couldn't make it that night so the lay minister presided over the mass sans homily. Prior to the mass when he announced that the priest won't be able to make it he explained that he is authorized to conduct the ceremony. But if any member in the congregation feels that they would rather have a priest preside over the mass they are free to leave to attend mass the following day. Nobody took the offer. We were such a small group, maybe 30 to 40 people. Mostly old couples like us??? I can't believe it....we are now them becoming senior citizen!
Highlight for this month is our vacation trip to Arizona. Went to the Grand Canyon and other interesting places. We left Fri 09/26 at 11:15 am and arrived 12:32 pm in Phoenix. We are ahead by an hour in MN. We departed Tue 09/30. W and I took separate flights on our way back since she's going straight to Arkansas from MSP Airport. Ryan her staff was kind enough to pick me up at the airport. Since he also dropped us off at the airport I had my car parked in his apartment. I can't believe I drove a total of 1,000 miles from the airport and back when we returned the rental car.
Thu 09/25, day before we left for Arizona, I mowed the lawn maybe for the last time this year before the cold weather really sets in. I noticed this red clump on one of the fallen branches at the side of lawn. Looking at it closer it was a cluster of red insects. Creepy but interesting. I took a pic of it and so with our green backyard before it goes bare this winter.
Thu 09/04 I did another "honeydue" task. Assembled the lounge chair for the three season porch. A friend who frequents the Mystic Lake casino gave us a $0.25 per gallon gas coupon discount that would expire the following day. There were about 5 coupons and the gas station was just at the end of our street. So W gave the other coupons to our neighbors. Funny thing is I decided to gas up early evening and while doing so an old Asian woman at the opposite pump approached me and gave me another coupon. I thanked her for it. I guess the promo was only good until the following day and those with extra coupons still in their hands were giving it away. With the price of gasoline we'll take whatever discount we can get. Alas I just had to throw it.
Sun 09/07 W and I worked on my side of "garden project". It would be our last garden work for this year. I was not able to finish my side as I still really can't envision how I want it to look. Just set the pavers and see what happens. Now that most plants are on sale W's been asking me if I want this or that plant to be on the garden. And I say okay or whatever if it's really cheap. We'll see how it turns out.
Sun 09/14 after mass we had brunch at
Wed 09/17 is not a good day for the economy. It has been so for the past days. But all that news about Lehman's Bear Stearns and bailouts of AIG, Freddie Mac, Fanny Mae brings with it a doom and gloom scenario. You just keep on wishing that everything will be fine before it hits you where it hurts. Then Mon 9/29 it happened. Stocks plummeted. My 401K took a big hit. Think about those retirees. We were still in Arizona vacationing when I saw the news on TV.
Sat 09/20 because I had to work Sun and I'm not getting off work until 6:00 Sat I checked on the yellow pages the churches' mass schedule near our place. Lo and behold I found one that has an anticipated mass at 7:00 pm. So I called W and told her I'll pick her up after work to catch the mass at
Highlight for this month is our vacation trip to Arizona. Went to the Grand Canyon and other interesting places. We left Fri 09/26 at 11:15 am and arrived 12:32 pm in Phoenix. We are ahead by an hour in MN. We departed Tue 09/30. W and I took separate flights on our way back since she's going straight to Arkansas from MSP Airport. Ryan her staff was kind enough to pick me up at the airport. Since he also dropped us off at the airport I had my car parked in his apartment. I can't believe I drove a total of 1,000 miles from the airport and back when we returned the rental car.
Thu 09/25, day before we left for Arizona, I mowed the lawn maybe for the last time this year before the cold weather really sets in. I noticed this red clump on one of the fallen branches at the side of lawn. Looking at it closer it was a cluster of red insects. Creepy but interesting. I took a pic of it and so with our green backyard before it goes bare this winter.
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Weeks Past 08/04-08/31/08 (BBQ,PW Outing,Plum)
This is a month's worth posting. I'm sooo delayed. I planned on posting journals on a weekly basis. It's not gonna happen. I'll never be able to catch up. Besides some weeks are uneventful (thank God for that). But I was hoping, again, that I could put some thoughts (do I have that? Unbelievable! Better stick with the truth. The truth? "You can't handle the truth!") for those uneventful times.
Spring and summer found us spending more time in the garden. Cleaning the backyard and planting as shown in my previous entries. By the time we get done you just want to get rested for your day job the following the day. Even opening your computer to read e-mails gets to be a chore.
Mon 08/04 I noticed the third bloom in our orchid with the fourth on the way. By Sat 08/09 the fourth also blossomed.
W bought additional plants for her project Wed 08/13 I had my planting chore cut out for me as the pics show. I can't remember how many pots there were. I'm sure it's more than ten. Pics below would better illustrate it.
Sat 08/16 W's Regis group had a B-B-Q get together at home. The weather cooperated. It was sunny and bright. A lazy afternoon. The staff enjoyed the day eating and watching a re-run of the Opening Presentation of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. The day also coincided with my Mom's b-day. Gave her that important call.
Following Sat 08/23 was PointWest's summer outing atBunker Beach ,Coon Rapids. A lot of people got lost going to the place. That includes us (W and moi) with GPS and a printed direction from Mapquest,duh. Blame it on the street signs, directions, everything else... except us. The guys responsible for the lechon (roasted pig) as the lunch's piece de resistance arrived late. Somewhere along the way they also lost their way. People were already hungry so they did not wait. Mr. Lechon became a merienda and take home.
Mon 08/25 W flew to Arkansas for business. This week highlighted the Democrat's presidential nominees' convention. Tue 08/26 was Hillary's and Thu 08/28 was Obama's. It's a close and bitterly fought nomination to be the Dem's presidential candidate. Hillary's supporters did not expect it to run this way. A year ago they thought it would be a walk in the park. Like a given. Now they are fighting tooth and nail to stay in the race. I call it an upset in the making. Whoever planned Obama's campaign strategy and ran it is good.
Fri 08/29 I noticed the plum bore its first fruits, two actually, albeit small ones. I think its premature.
Spring and summer found us spending more time in the garden. Cleaning the backyard and planting as shown in my previous entries. By the time we get done you just want to get rested for your day job the following the day. Even opening your computer to read e-mails gets to be a chore.
Mon 08/04 I noticed the third bloom in our orchid with the fourth on the way. By Sat 08/09 the fourth also blossomed.
W bought additional plants for her project Wed 08/13 I had my planting chore cut out for me as the pics show. I can't remember how many pots there were. I'm sure it's more than ten. Pics below would better illustrate it.
Sat 08/16 W's Regis group had a B-B-Q get together at home. The weather cooperated. It was sunny and bright. A lazy afternoon. The staff enjoyed the day eating and watching a re-run of the Opening Presentation of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. The day also coincided with my Mom's b-day. Gave her that important call.
Following Sat 08/23 was PointWest's summer outing at
Mon 08/25 W flew to Arkansas for business. This week highlighted the Democrat's presidential nominees' convention. Tue 08/26 was Hillary's and Thu 08/28 was Obama's. It's a close and bitterly fought nomination to be the Dem's presidential candidate. Hillary's supporters did not expect it to run this way. A year ago they thought it would be a walk in the park. Like a given. Now they are fighting tooth and nail to stay in the race. I call it an upset in the making. Whoever planned Obama's campaign strategy and ran it is good.
Fri 08/29 I noticed the plum bore its first fruits, two actually, albeit small ones. I think its premature.
Pic at right below, the finished product. New plantings can hardly be discerned. Hopefully next year we can see the difference IF the plants survive the winter
Pic at left, Me, lining up the pots to be planted
The planting starts
The tete-a-tete group can't wait any longer so they decided to take matters into their own hands. Lets b-b-q
Finally, let's eat
Other guests
The Bunker Beach
The rented Pavilion
A summer outing without a b-b-q?
Too late the lechon.
The wave pool.
Plum's first fruits.
Sunday, August 03, 2008
Week Past 07/28-08/03/08 (Orchid Bloom)
Wed 07/30 W is back from Chicago. I also noticed that the orchid (Phalaenopsis) in our dining area had its first bloom. Success!! I just followed the instructions that was hanging on the plant (left pic). Voila after winter then spring a flower bloomed. Sat 08/02 planted additional eleven potted plants at W's project. I'm still looking in my pic file if I was able to record this "effort". It helps your "recall" facility when you have pics that freezes those moments in time.
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Week Past 07/21-07/27/08 (Husker Red Beard Side Planting)
Wed 07/23 W flew to Chicago for about a week of business. A quiet week except before W left for Chicago she bought a "number" of plants day before that I'm now obligated to plant or they might wilt and die. So Sun 07/27, just like a "devoted" husband I "dutifully" planted the plants on both sides of the house. Luckily it was not hot that day as it took me a good three hours to complete the task. Three hours contempalting on whatever. If you see somebody doing garden work and focused at that. Rest assured his mind is not only on the task at hand but somewhere else thinking about....life, finance, work, past, present...or asking himself...why am I doing this?...Afterwards...with back and legs stiff, you slowly pull yourself up, stand back and look at your work satisfied you accomplished something that day. Now you hope that after this coming winter it will survive to grow and bloom for next year's spring.
