maybe i should have let you feel the pain that you deserve, you selfish f*ck. all you think about is yourself.

don't wait for me to make that decision, because once i do, you will forever be alone and miserable.

warning: post about underarm. bawal maarte.

i used to have nice underarms... not commercial worthy ones but they were not dark (no so white either) and had slight bumps that is unnoticeable from afar. when i got pregnant with my firstborn, my underarm darkened. it wasn't my whole underarm but there were patches of dark skin on both pits. it's not super gross (i've seen worse!) but then i still cannot lift my arms when wearing sleeveless.

it bothered me a bit so i started using calamansi (which is effective as i used to do that when i was single and a lot of time in my hands) but realized i can't maintain the practice because i had 2 kids to attend to, work, and household chores.

and then i came across those discount / group buying sites and got myself vouchers for a couple of underarm whitening sessions. i added an laser hair removal session just to know how it's done.

i had my first session yesterday ~ whitening and hair removal. i was ready to read a lot of magazines in the clinic as i arrived an hour early for my schedule. luckily, they were able to accommodate me agad without having to wait.

i had to take my top off and wear a towel. there were no bathrooms to change in, just the room where the beds are. so fine.

they did the whitening first. i had to lie on bed which is outside of the room and was just near the waiting area. the only thing dividing / hiding the beds is a wall panel. hindi naman kita ng mga naghihintay na patients, but still... no privacy at all. anyways, they made me lift my arms while vanessa put some cream on my underarms... and i had to wait for about 20 minutes doing nothing... just staring at the ceiling, while showing off my pits. haha! after 20 boring minutes, she wiped the cream off and that was that!

then i was led in the room where i changed my top and had to lie on another bed. buti naman at nasa loob na ng room ito. when vanessa learned that it was my first time, she advised me that it would be a little painful. kinabahan naman ako at this point. yikes! what have i gotten myself into? i never considered that it will be painful. so i braced myself. vanessa cut my hair as i have let it grow a bit too long ata. then she gave me goggles to keep my eyes closed during the session. then... laser on my pits. it wasn't as painful as i thought it would be. the feeling is like hair being plucked all at the same time na may konting paso factor. it was very bearable. there were only like 3 or 4 zaps on each underarm so it took less than 10 minutes ata. how cool is that?

that's that! i was out of the clinic in less than an hour. the verdict? my underarm seemed to have lightened ~ lightened, not whitened, take note. i hope it's not my imagination nor the lighting that made me think that way. they said that on an average, it takes 8 sessions for the pits to get really nice and smooth... but that would depend on the severity of the darkness or chicken skin of the pits. i think mine would take just about 2 or 3 more whitening sessions for it to be back to its original whiteness.

as of the hair removal, i am blessed with fine armpit hair so i will have to check back in a couple of weeks kung pwedeng hindi na magpa laser. i shaved my legs once, the hair never grew back. yes, i'm lucky like that. hopefully, that's the end of my underarm hair. haha! asa.

overall, it's nice that i was able to give myself some pampering. and this is in line for my project: tin 2004. hihihi. and when i'm done with my project, manlalalaki ako. bwahahahahaha! =)

who ever said married life is easy
is a
fool
and a
dreamer
03.16.12

the chicken thigh fillets were bored in the freezer and decided to leave to get a little warmth. i found them basking in the sink so i had to think of a recipe so they could be of use to me.

i came across a useful site, recipe-tv.ph and found a recipe for chicken teriyaki. i used to cook chicken teriyaki, but usually the fast and easy way ~ using bottled teriyaki sauce (i forget what brand).

this recipe is better... but still easy peasy:

Ingredients:
1 pack chicken thigh fillet
1 tbsp grated ginger
1/3 cup sugar
2 tbsp rice wine
¼ cup water
½ cup soy sauce
1 tbsp cornstarch, dissolved in
1 tbsp water

Topping:
1 tbsp sesame seeds, toasted
2 tbsp chopped spring onions

Procedure:
In a saucepan, combine ginger, sugar, rice wine, water and soy sauce. Cover and allow to boil. Add chicken pieces and cook covered for 10 minutes over moderate heat. In a small bowl, dissolve cornstarch in water. Mix well. Pour into chicken mixture and stir. Cook for another 2 minutes or until sauce lightly thickens. Remove from heat, transfer to a serving dish and top with toasted sesame seeds and chopped spring onions.
Makes 3 to 4 servings.

enjoy!

i have a secret. i don't eat ampalaya. i'm not fond of its bitter taste. yuck. that is... until recently.

my mom-in-law always teased me about not eating ampalaya. but when i tasted her ampalaya, i've been eating it since. mil's ampalaya is not as bitter as mama's. i think it's because papa wanted his ampalaya bitter.

now since i don't like ampalaya, i've never thought of cooking it. that is.. again, until the husband requested for it the other day. i was reluctant. i even went to the talipapa to get a couple of ampalaya.

i was nervous while cooking. will it be bitter? will be able to eat it? who would eat it if it doesn't come out good?

but surprise, surprise... masarap siya! and has just a hint of pait! success! i loved it! (love your own) i can even it it without rice. o, ha!


photo from pinoyrecipe.net || wasn't able to take a pic
now for those who do not know, the secret of no-pait ampalaya is to soak it in ice cold water before cooking. and that's exactly what i did.

first i cut the ampalaya into thin strips, then i placed them in a bowl filled with ice cold water (and ice) and set it aside. i saute the onions, garlic, and tomato. added knorr cube and the giniling. gisa, gisa, gisa. when it was cooked, i added the ampalaya. another secret is not to stir it immediately. after pouring the ampalaya slices, just wait for it to boil. i stir it a little when it's boiling na. let it cook, season with salt and pepper, then add beaten eggs. stir.

and voila! no-pait ampalaya!

i just have to say... i'm proud of this meal. =)

as i said yesterday, penoy's last day of school is on friday. it's also their moving up day. and for penoy's moving up program, parents have to decorate a guitar made of carton.


so i had to bring out the artsy-fartsy in me (not to mention the stagemom in me!!!) and create something that will stand out.

after swapping ideas from the husband, my sis-in-law, and my mom, i spent sunday night with sequence, glue, scissors, felt paper... you get the idea... and came up with this:


yesterday, i was able to take a peek at some of the other students' guitars... and i think, i overdid this one. hihihihi.

this is the last week of penoy's school, next week, summer vacay na! i have mixed emotions on this one though. i'm happy that we don't have to wake up early to prepare for school and i don't have to rush every morning. but then, that would mean we will stay in the house all day long! i'll be trapped at home with 2 ever so kulit monsters with a lot of energy to burn! yikes! that's a scary thought.

i worked on penoy's props for her moving up day on friday but that's for another post. this one nalang for now.

today was penoy's pajama day. all students had to wear their pjs and bring midnight snacks. penoy didn't bring anything since i have no idea what to bring as a midnight snack. haha! ano ba yun? my idea of a midnight snack is a balut! or or or some ice cream in the freezer. haha! i was able to get only a couple of photos:





penoy wore bitoy's pjs because she doesn't have a decent pajama fit for school. they were all house pjs. and it's the only set of pjs in the house decent enough to be worn outside the house. hihihi. it was still too big for bitoy that he has not worn it yet and tucked away in the "still too big" closet.

almost all my life, i lived in a gated exclusive subdivision. yes, it is safe and quiet and everything peachy. however... if you want to go somewhere, say, to a drugstore... or a salon, and you don't have a car... patay na. you would have to walk from your house to the subdivision gate. you're lucky if there is a tricycle station just outside your subdivision. where i used to live (parents' house), there's none. we would have to either wait for a trike to pass by or walk further to where the main road is.

we spent this weekend at my inlaws place... it is definitely not in a subdivision. the house is not on a main road but it where jeepneys and trikes pass through regularly. there is a school a few meters away from the house. around the block is a main road lined up with sari-sari stores, drugstores, salons, carinderia, and what-nots. i have lived there for a year or so and i never really complained about it (ok, maybe a couple of times). but this weekend, i saw the beauty (and convenience) of living in a place like that.

i was bored saturday and wanted a footspa. very conveniently, there is a decent salon that offers low-cost (i don't want to say cheap, but it is cheap) services. my footspa cost P200 only, kasama na dun pedicure. i enjoyed it... the lady who did me was friendly and had gentle hands. wala akong sugat. my feet were well taken care of, thank you. ang ganda ng paa ko! they also had tv (but, of course they were tuned in to something local. but then that's fine kasi natuwa naman ako sa manny many prizes. haha.). i'm a satisfied customer... and that salon is just a stone's throw away from the house lang. i will definitely come back!

today, i needed to buy something from a drugstore. there is a drugstore near the house but i had doubts if it had what i needed so i went to mercury. i could easily walk to mercury but i didn't want to so i took a tricycle. again, very conveniently, there is a trike station about 20 steps away. so isang tambling ko lang, nasa trike na ako. and in 3 minutes, i was in mercury. i was done in 2 minutes. just outside mercury is a trike station (again?) and in 5 minutes (mabagal si lolo magpatakbo), i was back home. i was done in less then 10 minutes! how convenient is that?

narealize ko tuloy na ang lame tumira sa subdivision. haha!

i've been wondering why i have been consuming my phone load so fast for 2 weeks now... yun pala, i've been subscribed to club binbit! aaaargh! badtrip!

kaya pala i've been getting these weird messages asking to go to this particular url. just by subscribing to the club, it credits your phone load P10 a day! highway robbery diba? what's more, it's just so easy to sign up... all you have to do is input your mobile phone number in their website. it just so happen that i needed to experiment (research for work) and i had to input my number. fine. sige, tanga lang.

anyway, at least now i know what's eating up my phone load. i've already unsubscribed (which is easy lang din. thank God!). so now i can enjoy my phone load fully.

hay, nagtitipid pa naman ako sa load. hmpht.

i chanced upon a blog today by a filipino in singapore working as an executive by day and a drag queen by night. i find his blog witty and entertaining. however, in one of his post, he recounted a time when he was on an mrt carrying 3 heavy bags. he said he went ballistic when a lady grunted at him for not giving up his seat in a crowded mrt.

i respect his decision not to give up his seat to a lady because of his heavy bags. that's fine. but i do not appreciate it when he said that ladies do not deserve a seat just because they are females. if i were that lady and you knew that i was eyeing the seat at nakipag unahan ka sa akin, i would give you the 'look' too.

sige, maybe we don't deserve it, per se. but i believe as courtesy, men should give up their seats for women (which only happens very very seldom nowadays). when i ride the the public transportation, i don't expect men to give up their seats for me (especially because i'm big and far from looking fragile or helpless).

oh, and in elevators! goodness... i notice some men ~ young, very capable, healthy, huge men na nakikipagsiksikan sa elevator with pregnant women or families with children or old couples. nakngpating. nakakagigil. i always have to stop myself from telling them off. bakit hindi sila mag escalator or stairs?! *grumble* *grumble*

and that brings me to us women fighting for equal rights. we demand that people treat us equally. we have organizations fighting for this everyday. personally, i believe in equal rights. i believe that women should be given the same opportunity as men does. i believe that a woman should be able to work a man's job.

but, see, this is the tricky part ~ i still believe that men should give up their seats for women but at the same time, i want men to treat women as equal. labo, diba? and this is exactly what double standards mean.

even i am confused on what i want to happen in these times. haha! i guess, even with all that equality for men and women shiznits, i still want men to acknowledge that we are still women. i expect them to give up their seats to women who are old, pregnant, or with a child at tow. i also expect men to give up their seats to women who are carrying a heavy load or several bags. i expect men to give way to women in elevators at wag na makipag siksikan if they see that the elevator is almost full.

ganun lang naman kasimple yun e. equal rights, but acknowledge the fact that we are still women.

unfair? i don't think so. ask your moms. haha!