Living the Dream

I cannot remember when it started, but all I know is that if I had a lot of money, my greatest dream (aside from being a successful housewife) is to have my own restaurant. I even have the concept for it, I just don't have the skills, expertise, and of course the resources to set it up.

That is why for now, my restaurant is our kitchen, and my customers are my mother, husband, and daughter. Last Christmas eve, I started honing my culinary skills by trying to bake a chocolate cake and cooking Kare-Kare for the first time. Everything went well, I guess.

Earlier, I tried to cook another dish. And before I forget, I am going to put the recipe on record because my mom and husband, and even my 5-year old daughter loved it. Some may call it pacham (pachambahan), but this is my own version of the infamous potato soup:

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Chelle's Home-Made Bacon, Mushroom and Potato Soup

4 cloves garlic, minced
2 medium onion, sliced
4 pcs medium-sized potato, cut into cubes
250g bacon, sliced or cut into small pieces
1 big can mushroom (slices or pieces and stems)
1 small can of milk
1/4 cheese
2 cups water
2 tbsp cornstarch mixed with 2 tbsp water
salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:
1. Saute the bacon until it becomes golden brown. Set aside and leave the oil on the pan.
2. Using the oil from the bacon, saute the garlic and the onion. Add the potatoes and cook for 5 to 10 minutes.
3. Add the mushroom and bacon and cook for another 5 minutes.
4. Add the milk, cheese and water. Bring to a boil.
5. Add the cornstarch mixture.
6. Add salt and pepper to taste.

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I know I do not have any formal culinary training or experience, and if I am fortunate to be able to live my dream of becoming a restaurant owner in the future, I'll definitely include this (or an improved version) on my menu. I know that it will take at least a few years before I become capable of starting my dream restaurant. So for now, I'll just live my dream by preparing sumptuous meals for my loved ones. 

Bawal Magkasakit!

9 days and still counting... I am still sick and I can't take it. Good thing I do not have to go on  9-6 job and I get to stay at home. I have nothing else to blame but the fumes from the fireworks on New Year's Eve. I should have just followed my instincts and stayed inside the house rather than feast on the colorful lights and the deafening sounds that we are so accustomed to have to welcome the new year.

Where did this tradition come from anyway? Probably I'm going to Google the answer later on, but for now I'm wishing that in the future, we can think of alternative ways to spend the new year without fearing the consequences of such seemingly harmless instruments.

For now, probably for the next few years, I will stick with what I am used to... I am never going out of the house on New Year's eve ever again unless Manila is declared a fireworks-free city. I will just be contented to bang a spoon or a fork on a metal pot cover to make some noise around the house, and I am just going to east my eyes on the fireworks display that will be shown on the television.

I will feel better in a few days, but I will never forget the lesson I've learned the hard way during the onset of 2011. I don't want to be sick again on the first few days of a new year.

Our Time To Shine

I just got home from the 9th anniversary of First Vita Plus. No pictures since we stayed in the upper box level so taking pictures with a low-tech camera would just be a waste of time. Lots of things were going on around me as we were waiting for the announcement of the grand prize winner which is just one cent short of a million - people cuddling up because of the freezing temperature in our area, my seat mate (you know who you are, wink! wink!) starting to get worried because he thinks his wife is thinking he is somewhere else, and people cheering as Lani Misalucha started showing her singing prowess (thanks to Ms. Doyee and Sir Soc for such a wonderful treat).

As all of this are happening, I was sitting quietly, pondering what I am doing there. I cannot honestly hope that I will be the lucky winner of the grand prize. Aside from a PSP and a Timex watch that I won a few years back during a company raffle, I haven't had much luck with this stuff. So, why did I choose to stay and attend such a gathering.

While most people were there to celebrate the fruits of their labor for the past year, I was thinking differently. I had to stay and finish the celebration up to the last second because I would need all the inspiration I can get in order to reach my goals and my dreams once and for all.

True enough, I did not go home with the P999,999.99 grand prize, but I left the celebration with much more than that. I left with lots of hope, faith, and inspiration that I have really made the right decision. I am with the right people, the right product, and the right path in order to fulfill my dream to be able to gain financial and time freedom a few months or a few years from now. I know that if I just keep on believing, if I stay focused, and if I put my all in this endeavor, soon I will be able to spend time with my husband and daughter without worrying about loans, bills, and other expenses. Soon, I will be able to share the same experience with the friends I have encouraged to join me in this path (and those that I have yet to convince).

With patience, faith, perseverance, determination and the most sincere intention to help other people, I know that it is indeed my time -- our time to shine.

The Song of My Heart

I started singing since I was around 5 years old, and to honor that fact, I want to start out by posting a song that is very special to me. But when I started thinking what my favorite song is, I realized that I actually don't have one. If there's one thing about myself that I am sure of, it's that I am very emotional, and my favorite song usually changes depending on what my heaviest emotions are at the moment. So I checked out a blog I used to have featuring my favorite songs and poems just to check if there's any song in there that I could own. If a penguin can have a heart song, then it's not impossible for me to have one as well.

And I was right, after all. I think I found a song that I was able to relate to a few years back, a song that I can still relate to in the present, and a song that can still reflect my emotions when I am old and reminiscing on my deathbed. I even had the following note written on my previous blog for this song:

"NO RUSH


Loving someone does not mean you have to love that person now. Loving someone at the wrong place and at the wrong time usually makes things complicated.


If it's true love, it will withstand time and distance, and even if we need to sacrifice a little, true love does not have to be rushed. Waiting to be at the right place and at the right time to love someone definitely has benefits that we will never get if we hurry love."

I have believed in love since I was a kid. I almost lost faith when my husband and I got separated for a while, but got it back when we were finally able to reconcile. I know that at this point in my life I am not sure where my decisions will lead me, but I am sure that if my brain does not have the capacity to lead me to the right path, my heart will be able to compensate. I am not sure if this will really be my heart song until the day I die, but for now I think it is.

For those who don't know Basia's Time and Tide, let me share the video and the lyrics of the song:










TIME AND TIDE
by Basia

Yeah

It's hard for me to stop my heart
Love never knows when the time is right
I don't want to hurt anybody
But I can't help lovin' you

I never felt like this before
I know there's a special place worth waiting for
Let life takes it course
That's the only thing for us to do, yeah

We've got time, oh baby, there's no rush
Gonna be a better day for us
Hang on and I will wait for you
Our love will always stay as good as new
Time and tide
Nothin' and no one can stop us now
For better, for worse
This time I'm sure
It's gonna last

How can I stop my heart
Love never knows when the time is right
I don't want to hurt anybody
I don't wanna make them cry
Don't wanna make them cry

We've got time, oh baby, there's no rush
Gonna be a better day for us
Hang on and I will wait for you
Our love will always stay as good as new
Time and tide
Nothin' and no one can stop us now
For better, for worse
This time I'm sure
It's gonna last

hey, hey, hey

It's a matter of time, yeah
Only a matter of time,
Just a matter of time...

Time and tide
Nothin' and no one can stop us now
For better, for worse
This time I'm sure
It's gonna last
Gonna last forever!

We've got time, oh baby, there's no rush
Gonna be a better day for us
Hang on and I will wait for you

My Purple Haven

I have been learning the ropes of blogging since 2008 However, I have to admit that I did it for the wrong reasons. I let the side of me that's craving for material satisfaction win. So, almost three years after I ventured into this world, I have parts and parcels of me scattered all over the place.


I started a blog featuring my favorite songs. I have a blog about my favorite author. I have a blog about my online money-making ventures, and so on and so forth. But I don't update them anymore. Not because I don't have anything to write about, but because I simply don't know where to start.


It took me a couple of months of pondering to finally realize why I suddenly lack the motivation to write. It's not because I lost my writing skills; it's not because I don't have anything to write about. It's because for the longest time I have been writing for the wrong reasons, and in a way I lost myself in the process.


A few years back, I can look any person in the eye and tell him or her what I really want in life. But now, I can't even face myself in the mirror and know what I really want to achieve in my life. I still don't know what's in store for me I am not sure if the new year spells a new beginning for me, but I sure hope that before the year ends, I will be able to go back to my roots, appreciate the blessings I currently have, and know what lies ahead. And I hope I can have things figured out soon.


So, as a start, I am going to make things right once and for all, and keep a little virtual space to myself which I can also share with the people who are significant in my life, hoping that in the process I will be able to  know what I really want and what I am really meant to do in this world.


Purple has been my favorite color since I was a teenager. It has been a source of inspiration for me during my moments of confusion and despair, and I hope setting up my own purple haven will allow me to find the right path soon...