I have gone on hiatus (unintentionally!) for the past two months. I was feeling burnt out so I decided to take a few days vacation to rejuvenate and recharge. To my dismay… I felt even more tired after my vacation… It’s crazy! So, I opted to take it slow, relax, and enjoy the rest of short summer. 😀
Now… I feel refreshed! And yes, I’m back! I bet you’re excited what I’ve been up to, right Justin? 😀
Before we went to Palliser Park Marina (the camping site), there’s been a big mystery on what supper will the Executives’ (a.k.a. Execs) prepare on the Saturday night of the company outing.
what could it be?
Two execs kept the whole employees guessing… The anticipation heightened when one of them mentioned that it can either be the perfect supper ever or a complete disaster. Ha!
Questions kept popping up especially when people saw one of the Execs digging a pit within the campsite. Eventually, someone let the cat out of the bag before the first camping night was over. So much for the secrecy. 😉
“hidden” pit
Apparently, the “special” supper is part of a tradition done in Hawaii and it is called luau. Therefore, the Execs decided to have the VendAsta version of luau for the first company camping.
Here’s the summary on how it was done… the VendAsta way:
pig (& chicken) :p
sprinkle with magic spices
wrap
“ritual”
throw in the hot pit
cover
take it out after 10-12 hours
wait…
ready?
ready… for real?
Result:Epic fail.
uncooked pig
But wait…
Being real troopers, that did not dampen the Execs’ spirit. Plan B was thought of in a flash. And the VendAstians helped out to make it happen.
Output: Tasty deep fried whole chicken and grilled pork
chicken
pork
(Err… I don’t eat pork so I just had my share of the delicious deep fried chicken which reminded me of the Philippines’ Langhap Sarap Jollibee endorsed by Sarah Geronimo and Gerald Anderson (a.k.a. AshRald) 🙂 )
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On a side note, the Philippines has it’s own tradition of roasting pig. The roasted pig is famously called “lechon baboy” and it’s present in almost all occasions like family reunion. Click here to read family reunion article.
Rein was “strategically” bugging me to write an article about her when I suddenly remembered our “apartment days”. We used to stay in a two-bedroom apartment together with Brendzkie, Rhog, DinDin, Jo, Mitch and Charvin.
For storytelling purposes, I’m going to call the two bedrooms as La Union and Ilocos. Rein, Brendzkie, Rhog, and I occupied the La Union room while DinDin, Jo, Mitch and Charvin stayed in the Ilocos room.
We had a fetish for street foods like isaw (grilled chicken intestine), adidas (grilled chicken feet), kwek kwek (quail egg boiled and deep fried), balot (hard boiled fertilized duck egg), fishballs, squidball and grilled corn. Darn! It tastes heavenly!
pagoda
apartment magic sofa
Rein, Jo, Miriam, DinDin, Maven, Rhog, & Brendzkie
On the other hand, the two rich kids (Brendzkie and Rein) alternately treats us to a posh and divine steak meal whenever they feel like it. Perhaps they just want to neutralize our taste buds from eating the celestial street food.
We normally stay and “party” in the apartment most of the time. “Party” pertains to:
heart to heart talk while gulping a bottle of vodka and tequilla (occasionally)
tête-à-tête in our rooms, living room, dining table and laundry area coupled with guffaw and sobbing
dancing our favorite songs, Come On Over by Christina Aguillera and Music by Madonna
______________________________________________________ Note: Rein used to dance from the second floor down to the first floor with her trademark “wiggle hips” step. Also, Brendzkie loved to dance on the sofa, on the bed, or on any platform with her favorite striptease moves. 🙂
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Our preferred place for a spirited night out was High Altitude bar. And to sober up, we go to Pagoda for a breath of fresh air and take snapshots during wee hours. Ha!
Visitors frequent our renowned quarters and to name a few, they were Maven, Miriam, Edel, Allan, and Sean. For me, the one who left a far-fetched mark was Maven. She had affinity with my pillow. She loved to cuddle it and used it when she takes a nap in the La Union room.
The catch? It’s my “feet pillow”! I can’t help but to burst out in hearty laughter when Rein, Brendzkie, and Rhog informed me about Maven’s favorite cushion. It must be my feet’s aroma which was stuck to the pillow that got her spellbound. Ha!
Before I spill the beans about the ketchup and condiments adventure in Jollibee and Greenwhich… Zipping up my mouth now… err… should I say ending my article now… Whatever!
By the way, Rein, did Maven ever knew the secret of the “perfumed” pillow? Just curious. 😀
Gotta snooze! Signing off for real… for now! (Personal Note: Thank you Rein for taking time in digging and sending the photos! Merci Beaucoup! )
I’ve been asked a gazillion times when will I get married and it’s like a broken record that kept playing in my head whenever I hear that question. Sometimes, I still get irritated no matter how hard I try to play it cool. :p
I’m in my early 30s, and so what? As they say, life begins at 40. Ha! At any rate, I’m also human and I long to get married someday. However, entering the married life for the sake of having a husband and kids doesn’t appeal to me.
I could have been married a couple of years ago but I opted not to. Although, I suffered a lot of turbulent events because of that, it’s been one of the wisest decision that I’ve ever made in my entire life. My life could have been hell or even worse. Whew!
I definitely want to get married someday (sooner rather than later) BUT with the guy whom I would love and look forward to see and be with, day in and day out, in sickness and in health, through good times and bad times, through hardship and prosperity… Awwwwww…. I’m getting cheesy. :p
I want to spend the rest of my life with someone whom I really really really want to be with. Adoption will be an option if I can’t have kids by then. Also, I can just travel the world, earn buttload of bucks and find myself a good home for the aged to take care of me when I get old if I don’t crosspath with my “guy”. 🙂
Anyway, below are some of the standard replies that I’ve formulated to the frequently asked question, “when are you getting married?”:
in God’s time
Reaction: they look at me in a very strange way then shut up.
tomorrow, venue: Jollibee (Filipino version of McDonalds), food: kiddie meal (toy included which served as a souveneir)
Reaction: They laugh and say that I’m funny. Some actually believes it though. whoa!
next year, it will be in Las Vegas
Reaction: “Oh! How can we attend, We don’t have a budget for the airfare”