jonettevalenciano.com: Pundar

Showing posts with label Pundar. Show all posts

Hi everyone. sorry for the long, long bout of blogging silence. You know how it with life: when you're not blogging, you're living, and boy, I've been doing a lot of living lately.

Mostly of the domestic persuasion, but yeah, still living. :)

To be honest, I'm not sure how to begin. What do I tell you?

I'd like to say I'm lucky that May is a month full of French holidays. This means I get to rest at home --- "rest" translating into "cleaning and refurbishing the house and forgetting to relax all the same."

Oh no. Yours truly has been a chronic homemaker this May.

Here, let me show you.

Meet _____, the crockpot. I still haven't named him yet, but I am deadly sure it's a him. He doesn't look like a Gordon, nor an Emeril, nor an Alton. Here his being christened with my first slow-cooked chili, recipe made on the fly. Ditas and Irl had a taste of it, and said it was dee-lish. *curtsy* I'm on a roll right now with cooking my fourth crockpot dish, and wow!

I'll also write post recipes and my own exploits with the crockpot, so please stay tuned.

(A-ha! We shall name him Cooking Master Boy!

-- such decisions are made when one needs to stay up late, getting nostalgic over episodes of the anime of the same name, and watching Stephen Chow's God of Cookery. Yep.^_^*

The past few weeks have also brought some unexpected chaos to the house.

One, the main water pipe leading to my apartment exploded. Again! It's specially tough when the pipes go all 'round the main house before they reach our apartments, and with some crafty placement of the water meters, it seems the repairs for my bused pipe are my sole responsibility. *sigh* Ah, well. I'm just glad Mang Julio once again came and put a stop to my waterwork woes once and for all. Instead of having to constantly repair and rely on the weak old pipe, he decided to dig a shorter path from my water meter to the apartment, and installed a brand new PVC water pipe route. We now enjoy hot bath water in the afternoons and cold water in the evening, courtesy of the cement surrounding the pipes. And to think, he just did all this in three days! If he's not a wonderworker, then I don't know what he is!

Err, second.

I've finally upped and gone done rearranging and cleaning the bedroom, for the sake of mobility, breath-ability, and my own personal sanity. Right now, the room still has much in the way of order, but I'm glad with the progress it's made so far.

This excavation attempt, the first of many to follow, have also not been without its treasures. Again, pictures and an exposé to follow.

I also took a leave to celebrate my dad's birthday last Friday.

A brief background, if I may.

For the past two years, I've always had the strange experience of getting all excited for Papa's birthday -- and then missing it by a week, either earlier or later. *sigh* I just have this terrible tendency to forget dates.

Now this year, I made it a point to be right on the dot, show up on his doorstep, large confectionary gift in hand, and surprise him. Wow! I actually and unbelievably got it right this time!

And it turns out the entire family's out and about, packed with work to the gills, and have left the front porch to the supervision of my dad's two birds.

Ah.

Well, more to this narrative in a few posts to come.

Then there was meeting up with Mikhal and George for for a grand file-swap escapade that started in Starbucks Eastwood Mall, to SM Marikina, to Mikhal's House, and home again home again, jiggety jig.
Comics scans and episodes and movies and documentaries galore! Right now, I snuggled quite comfily into issues of Alan Moore's Promethea, Thank you, Mikhal, for helping me fall in love with comics all over again.

Then, of course, there's the shirt-to-grocery-bag tutorial I've still to write up. Que Barbaridad!

So there: three recipes, and two stories promised.

I now leave your with Tombe the Cockatoo, and Noddy the Sun Conure, with matching videos to entertain. enjoy.

from the Resistance of the Body series,

by René Glorius.

I had been debating with myself whether or not I should post this entry. It will probably not be a very cheerful one. Exorcising demons is hardly anything to smile about.

For some reason I could not place my finger on, I had begun to feel very despondent with each passing day of the week Unproductive. Boorish, even. I wanted to find the the reason for all these negative feelings and tension.

... which, I wonder, should be renamed The Mini-bar/ Cafetia Counter instead.

Junior marking out where the nails and the big boards go on the wall. Be vewy, vewy, quiet.

Behold, a miracle!

The non-shiny version of the counter. see that slot on the table? That's where the stair support will fit in.

And here's Tweed sitting quite prettily in the hamper. I reckon he exchanged the buzz and racket downstairs for the warm sun-glow and the cushion-y comfort of human clothing. Smart cat.

Fitting the table...

And it's done! Mang Julio cut out a hole on the table for all the computer cables and wires to fit through. Clever, clever.

Here's the opposite end of the table. The connection of the second step and the table will undoubtedly be of creative use to our cat. At some point, I thought, "hey! I could probably fit my sewing machine here and whirr away while James is on the PC!", then realized that I'd forgotten to ask Mang Julio to cut out another hole for that idea too. Uh-oh.

On another occasion, I wondered -- what if I had the sides of the knick-knack display shelves ripped off? Wouldn't that achieve the feeling of more space? (I also realized this would give the cat more avenues for exploration, turning it into embedded staircase of sorts.) I put the idea away for another event when we found we'd have more time and money on our hands. The very next day, my mother says, "anak, why don't you tear down the whole display shelve piece and extend the table and make it end-to-end? Wouldn't that be better?"

Um.

I'm also giving a lot of thought to the unused space below the counter. I'd like to make good use of that one day. All that space would be good for CD carry-cases, maybe even a scanner or a printer. We could also have comfy padded stools that double-served as a stash-away box for other items, the kind that'd fit right well under the counter. Think of the possibilities!

I must say, I also have some ambitious plans for that wall. Do we make it an accent wall in brown, with lights about it? with display shelves for books or photos or pictures? What about placing my mother's bronze Natraj somewhere to oversee the kitchen and dining area across him? Or better yet... why not a forged Kris displayed above the PC for protection, and to be honored by the many battles won and fought beneath it in the glow of a modern machine?

I still have many, many plans brewing in my head, but they will have to wait, for now at least. The best plans are best executed when there are enough resources at hand.

First, we paint the PC table. Then, paint the first floor walls. And then, we tear down the landing shelves, and then rebuild a much more efficient shelving system, and then build shelving awnings for books, and then fit in a full-length mirror beside the bathroom, and then, and then, and then...

Sssh. All in good time.

Aaaaah.

Finally painted and dried, and ready for filling up.:)

And here we have a newly-painted kitchen counter. Look at that nice, new semi-gloss sheen.

Mang Julio did a bit of upcycling magic on the old, battered kitchen cupboard. Remember the last two doorless shelves above the refrigerator? That's what you're now seeing above. It now holds out laundry detergents and fabric softeners.

He pretty much patched up the nasty-looking hole on the wooden laundry ceiling.

Fantastic.

Also, something that crossed my mind seeing this:

Tubby cat aside, what is wrong with the side of this bed?

There are no drawers. Must have efficient use of space!

and the kitchen said "... aaaaaaaah."

Last saturday held a lot of pleasant surprises for me.

At about 3:15 in the morning, I was ruefully finishing up the last of a day's worth of work when my phone rang. James was on the other end of the line, and was wondering just where was I at this time of night? Since it was Black Saturday (the day after Thanksgiving) in the US, they were let off on a half-day basis, and he decided to come home to me.

And here he was, house- and cat-sitting, waiting for me to come home. Isn't he wonderful?

Later that day, we woke to sunlight streaming through our window and Mang Julio carting in the newly made cabinet! They immediately set to work.

Mang Julio and Junior taking off the supports. Yep, that's Weird Al blaring from James' DS.

Horray! And one rather astonished wee lizard.

Heave-ho!

Right now, the cabinet's been sanded, primed, and painted as I write. (well, not really, since Mang Julio's asleep at this time of night, but you get it.) The whole job costs a pretty penny, but I do believe it's all worth it. :) Now we just have to wait for the paint to dry, then try to figure What stuff goes where now. eliminate the expired foodstuff, and after that, edit, edit edit.

Hi everyone! I'll just make this a quick one. I am very. very happy with how quickly the house is coming to form, and quite amazed at it all, really.

These made my day:

Behold the loo valve. It drips no more. We can now flush in peace, and not worry about the water bill. Huzzah!

And the bathroom sink's water trap. It drips no more! Huzzah!

And the laundry area roof. See that nice, new sheet of corrugated galvanized iron? An ugly, brittle plastic roof used to occupy that space, and now, the washing machine need not fear drippy water damage. Huzzah! (There is still the question of the soft, flaky wooden roof next to it, though. Best we work on that too, and soon.)

A wooden kitchen counter extension fit for a gas range and then some! If you'll look closely, there a small hole in the middle on the edge sticking to the wall. Kudos to Mang Julio for thinking about the gas pipe. And look at all that space down below! Huzzah!

The man responsible for it all -- Mang Julio! (or his back, at least.) Huzzah! Huzzah! Huzzah!

We've also enjoyed buying a few appliances to make the bareness more forgiving, like this bright and shiny microwave (heated homecooked meals! popcorn! er... and sponge disinfecting!),

and this beautiful DVD player. The first one, after having served us faithfully -- with the habitual coughing and wheezing that is to be expected of China-made items -- had at last decided to give up the Great Machine Spirit within it. What fascinates me the most is the additional USB port in front.It is allegedly meant to play video files from any USB drive you plug into it. Hmmm! This will be a worthy experiment indeed.

Looking at the player now, it makes me think of a Manta Ray. Or a Great black whale shark.

The next project in line will be this. Mang Julio had taken the dimensions of the cupboard last I saw him, and I bet he's working on the base and the shelves right now, sawing, gluing pieces together, hammering away atop his own home. He said it was a cheap trick the first builders had done, scrimping on materials and using plywood boards that thin. Why, you can practically see it peeling apart like the pages of a water-damaged book.

When that's done, he'll haul it onto a vehicle, ship it to our house, and install it.

The man. is amazing. We want to buy him shoes. Or anything he and his family needs, for that matter.

At last! Heave-ho to fixing the apartment! A fresh roof above our heads and a happy loo may seem like slow starts, but they are indeed starts in themselves.

First off, we now revel in having a whole, repainted, and fortified roof above our heads. Yes, I do say revel in with with all the vim and vigor and lust in the phrase, and believe me, if you've toughed out sleeping on a cold, wet bed from a leaky ceiling from god-knows-what-happened to the roof, you'd use the word too. I cannot help myself from gushing over how Mang Julio and his men did such a bang-up job. It cost us quite a pretty penny though -- the P12k my folks from the US sent over went entirely to this project, but ye gods, it's finally done!

Secondly, we had the sliding front door's lock replaced with a stout, staunch dead bolt lock. (And in good time it was -- it didn't help that the old lock kept unlocking itself when I was alone on the first floor. The howling wind of last Friday's galestorm -- exactly on October 31st -- did not help matters or my nerves.) The argent lock now sits on the door like some grim gatekeeper set to question all those who would dare pass its portal -- even me. For short, the lock often refuses to open after a few twists, until one final pleading fiddle sets it aright. Now I'm set to wonder whether it's got itself confused for a rotating combination vault lock instead. Hmm...

Thridly, bathroom cosmetics. I'll let the video do the talking.

Call it Sulfur, Jejune, or Sour Yellow. I call it UltraHyperRadioactiveCanaryLemon and I love it!

Seeing to the bathroom sink's pipes, the toilet's flusher and the bidet will come next, but all in good time (and resource-pooling).

I must say, I'm beginning to rather quite enjoy getting the house back in order. There's a certain sense of achievement to it, and a feeling of making the living space irrevocably yours, piece by piece. This is my living space and my domain, and by ensuring everything is in good form and harmony, I make it so.

To adapt a phrase from Mel Brooks, it's good to be the queen.

Because I can't get Carl Sagan out of my head.

Aaaaaah.

Last Sunday, James and I managed to get some hardcore home shopping done. James is fantastic: he managed to find all the items we needed -- metal polish, three types of screwdrivers, rust remover and lubricant, lock-and-key doorknob, heavy-duty sliding-door lock, and a three-layer television-and-whatnots rack -- all in the hardware store, of the best quality our money could buy (and wow on the quality!), and in under 20 minutes. The man knows his stuff and is amazing. (and I'm squeeing because he's mine. ^_^*) We even had enough time to goof off with some of the tools "in case of zombie attack", haha.

So there: most mini-indoor household concerns are over and done with, and now there's just cleaning up and segregating the DVDs, jump-starting the refrigerator back to working condition, fixing the soaked kitchen cupboards (whose bases are currently in danger of giving way -- yikes!), as well as having the roof looked at and ultimately fixed.

Piece of cake.

Oh look, another distraction!

So, Monday afternoon, after getting our home affairs in order, we left for early lunch at Dell's (at Eastwood City's Citiwalk avenue), a cafeteria resto near my workplace. We love eating at places like these: the food was cheap, the ambiance and presentation was fun, and the food was surprisingly very good. ^_^*

What did we have? a cup of fried rice and a viand each -- he took creamy fish fillet, I took sizzling sisig--, coconut juice & a slice of Sansrival cake for him, and sago't gulaman & a sylvana for me, all under the tidy price of P355.00 (that's $7.80 or €5.92. Good for two very hungry people. Ha!) Alas, alas, the Razon's just next door had just opened, and we were too full to even accommodate a serving of halo-halo between us. Why do you teas us so? One day, Razon's, one day.

I love our date lunches. It's the joy of discovering cool, affordable, and delicious places to eat, and the afterglow of a meal well enjoyed. We managed to haul ourselves out of our seats, and walked off the food (or was it waddled?) our way to the taxi bay to see each other off. Ah, happy. <3

I've currently set to work on knitting myself a scarf (yes, this time, it'll be for me) in the DMC Senso Harlequin thread I picked up from the Dreams Yarshoppe in Glorietta 5 in Makati. It's going to be a simple Feather-and-Fan, Feather-and-Fan, Feather-and-Fan, then knit-one-purl-two pattern, then end with rows of Feather-and-Fan again. This should be over and done quickly.

Another officemate of mine wants to have these babies crocheted for his lovely lady, and they are awesome-rad. Which reminds me... Clair and I really must get around to our knitting date so we can hopefully work up our way to this. Then there's also these. (To heck with Stephenie Meyer, I just want to make these arm-warmers!)

Oowoowoowoowoowoo.

One of the sweetest, most positive evolutionist songs I've ever heard. Far as I've heard, anyway. :)

Pundar: To invest.
Yesterday, I went out early afternoon to go shopping for a new washing machine and a rice cooker before heading in for work. Well, more like having brunch, shopping for appliances, and picking up fresh kitty litter for Tweed.

I am very happy to say that the new 7-kilogram capacity washing machine and rice cooker will be delivered to the house this coming Saturday. I'm thrilled with the thought of finally moving forward after Ondoy, and I'm thankful for generous, selfless help from unexpected quarters.

Danielle, Roger, thank you. No words can express my joy and gratitude. I can now proudly say you are truly a part of my home. :)

Help has come form almost every unexpected quarter: my company, my past learners, my high school batchmates, my online friends -- all unbidden, unasked for. I am overwhelmed, and truly grateful.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
I do miss crocheting and knitting. Yarnwork keeps me grounded and at ease.