L & L Olandesca Townhaus Christmas Party 2014

It has been a tradition of our family to celebrate our compound's Christmas party every 12th of December in time for our grandfather, Col. Leonardo Olaira Olandesca, Sr.'s birthday.  Boarders, tenants, and transients do come and go year after year but my auntie Bebot whom they are fond of calling Nanay always sees to it that everybody is treated as family.  I may not know everyone in the compound now 'coz I rarely go out unlike before when I was still younger and got to hang out with the boarders my age, but still I find some time to smile and greet our neighbors whenever we cross path outside.  I am just glad this year that most of our tenants are faculty and students of La Salle University so I have company in going to and fro school everyday.

Now here comes the new faces of L & L Olandesca Townhaus!

Our party for this year was unique since we had zumba aside from the party basics like introducing oneself, parlor games, videoke challenge, and exchange gifts.

Sad to say, I left early before the party ends because I was exhausted from Halad 2014 rehearsals and I got to print laboratory activity sheets for my next day classes.  Hope to have more bonding moments with you, neighbors! :)

Tweet

Singko Mo, E-Regalo Mo

Praise God there ain't no typhoon this year!  Thank God there ain't no fatalities to be aided so Fascino's project for this year is for kids' joy!  As we launched our project last month, balloon orders kept coming thus making our 50 days of Christmas fruitful.  We didn't expect to have collected as much P5 coins for every dozen of balloons ordered at the store.  Aside from that, some customers/friends were also so generous to share their coins to our piggy bank.  So everything was made possible.  A party was thrown to the kids of Brgy. Bongbong Happy Church outreach and gifts were given to each and every child.  We had celebrated a very bountiful Christmas last week and this came into realization because of all of you.  Now here are some pics of the joy the kids experienced as our way of saying, "Thank you, thank you, ang babait ninyo!" :)

Parlor games were played and winners were given prizes.

A magic show was performed by Mr. Clown which amazes the kids so much!

Playtime with Bugs Bunny was a lot of fun time!

Now here comes the food and the gifts!

It's not only the kids who enjoyed but also the adults as well.

Thank you so much to my Singko Mo, E-Regalo Mo army for supporting this project all the way!  Thanks to Papa, Mama, Ep2x, and Laling.  To our cousin, Rio and niece Ella.  And of course, to Fascino's stockholders (hehehe) Annalyn, Christ, Alvite and Jing2x.  Thank you, thank you for sharing your time, talent, and effort to Fascino by Maria Rosalia!

And to you my dear blog readers and loyal customers, a big THANK YOU to all of you and 'till our next project, Fascinofiers! :)

Related Posts:

5 5 5

Oplan Damayan Yolanda

#TabangGikanSaMindanao

From Mindanao with Love

Oplan Kaagapay (Bagyong Sendong Relief Operation)

Tweet

My Contribution for Halad 2014

It's the third week of December yet I only managed to have three posts.  Too many backlog posts, too many activities, so little time.  How I still wish it would be 25 hours in a day!  So without delay, let me give you a snippet of our variety show for a cause yesterday aftie and last night, Halad 2014.

Last year after super typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda) left massive destruction in the Philippines, La Salle University Ozamiz immediately came up with a fund-raising concert for the survivors entitled Halad.  See story here.

This year, there ain't no typhoon at all.  Thank God!  But LSU recommenced the show as part of our community extension program.  This time, the show was properly and not hurriedly planned, well organized, more prepared, and almost all of the faculty, staff, and students participated.  It was indeed grand with the direction and choreography of Dr. Calixta Colarte, Vice Chancellor for Academic and Student Services, Mrs. Chiedel Joan San Diego, PE and Music Coordinator, and Mr. Ted Nudgent Tac-an, manager of LSU's resident theater company, Teatro Guindegan.

The MatSci Department as Team USA

Feeling Artista Moment with My Students/Fans.  Hehehe.....

Two Husbands.  Lol!

Thanks for My Hair and Make-Up, Sir Marvel! :)

Halad next year?  Well, we're still gonna do it!  Thank you so much to all of you who watched us yesterday afternoon and last night! :)  Animo La Salle!

Related Posts:

Halad: A Concert for a Cause for Typhoon Yolanda Survivors

University Days the Lasallian Way

85 Years of Excellence and Service

5th Inter-High School Academic Battle

Run for a Priest 2014

     

Tweet

Whimsical Wednesday: Happy Frozen Christmas

Whimsical Wednesday shows my fancy in a myriad of beautiful things. 

My December started without a feeling of December.  Then again, it would just be another cold December as my Decembers always had.  I even told Christ and Annalyn when we met last Saturday that I wasn't excited for Christmas.  I didn't even touch a single Christmas decor when my sister put up our Christmas tree at home.  Worst, I didn't have any plan of decorating Fascino for Christmas.  But I got rebuked when I watched ASAP last Sunday.  The show started with Martin Nievera's speech on how fortunate we were for being safe and dry while the others were battling yet another typhoon, Ruby.  So I told myself to set aside my lonely and selfish feelings.  It is just too selfish of me to only think of myself and grumbling about same old grumbles I have.  So I found light amidst the darkness I'm making to myself.

Gladly, my heart followed suit.  I am not that too selfish anyway!  As what Vice Ganda also said that night in GGV, "If we can't be happy, why not pass happiness to others so happiness will voluntarily find us."  So the following day, I decided to decorate the store!  However, I got tired and bored of same old decorations we have and thanks to my former student, Crissie for the fresh new frozen idea!  We got inspiration from FROZEN!!!!

More gladly, then came along Christ to the rescue!  With my new storekeeper Jing2x's help, everything was made possible!

Crafternoon with Christ and Jing2x

Then Olaf becomes the new Santa!  Kids passing by are mesmerized and tongue-tied at first before they exclaim "Ma, it's Olaf!" I feel happier making kids happy!  I also received FB queries on where our location is which made me more than glad.  So we are welcoming all of you to do visit us and take photos of Olaf with you!  Post your photo on FB or Instagram, write a sweet caption, and add the hashtags #ChristmasAtFascino #Ozamiz.  Ten best shots and ten best captions will receive Fascino scents of your choice!  This is our way of saying a big "THANK YOU!" for keeping us up for years now!  We will be waiting for your posts and let's all gonna have a Happy Frozen Christmas! :)  

Thank you so much for the realization and materialization of my simpleng hiling, Kringy!!! You do not only made me super happy but also all the kids and kids at heart passing by Fascino everyday! :)

Visit Fascino along Gomez St., (beside Mom's Sweet Delight, across Kinny's Bakeshop) Ozamiz City! :)

Related Posts:

My 12 Days of Christmas

I Welcome Christmas! :)

Epiphany of the Lord's Day

Tweet

#tosomquotes: Quotes To Live By, Quotes To Ponder On

Hello there, blog readers!  It's been a looooong while.  Sorry for not posting these past days 'coz I ran out of inspiration while also having a jump start of a doubly hellish month at Fascino.  But anyway, I have given birth to this little pauso of mine so I ought to share this with you as they are already piling up.  From the #tosomtravels hashtag I used for our trip last month, I had created another one that would somehow inspire my IG followers and FB friends.  Ladies and gentlemen, introducing-the #tosomquotes!  Hopefully with these quotes (mine originally or somebody else's), we can be for the better.  :)

The following images are arranged according to my chronological #ootd from the said trip.  Patatawarin po sa kababawan.  Hehehe.....

When a door is closed, force yourself to open windows. It's all in your hands to make things happen! 

"Love is not something you protect. It's something you risk."-Willem,‪ Just One Year

"The concept of YOLO isn't to go smoke, drink, and make an ass of yourself. It's to go out and do something with your life that matters!" - Anonymous

Whatever life throws at you, head up, heels high, and make your standards higher! 

"Ang hindi marunong lumingon sa pinanggalingan ay hindi makakarating sa paroroonan." A famous Filipino quote indeed! By our national hero, Dr. Jose P. Rizal. But there are also things that aren't worthy to look back to. 

Life is short so learn to break the rules! 

Come into the attic and play with me! 

Watch out for more #tosomquotes, y' guys!  These are only simple little quotes to ponder on that would hopefully help us to live happy lives!  xoxo Mae

Tweet

Getting Over It and Moving On

The third day after my last post for #yrech32 and my cursor still stays blink blink blink.....  What do I write after a very bonggacious vacation?  I don't want my blog to be tainted just yet!  But I have to write.  I need to write.  I need to post.  So what would be my story for today?  What is worth telling for?  I even asked my students for suggestions and one student directly answered, "How to move on?"  And my initial reaction was just laugh.  I laughed at the idea and even joked him of his plight in his love life.  But here I am about to write of it now.  Haha!  Maybe that's what everyone needs these days-a how-to in moving on.

However, moving on is not just for those who just broke their hearts.  It is about to move on to the next level, the next chapter, and for my case as a teacher, the next topic.  And same as for this blog, it's time to move on to the next post.  I may still have a hangover from the latest trip me and my friends had, and it's about time to get over it.  Like hello, I'm now back to reality-back to classes, back to Fascino, back to lonely walks home.  I guess that is life.  At least once in a while, we get to escape from the everyday madness we ought to face.

So for today, I'm moving on.  Not just literally here in my blog but also symbolically as a person.  29 days from now and it's gonna be new year and I don't have to wait for that for a new year's resolution.  Resolutions never make into reality for my case anyway!  So I'm making it a new life for me today.  I'm moving on to a life that I never had before.  Starting today, I'll choose happiness above anything else.  If you choose to be happy, then you'll be happy.  Am I making sense here?  And you might say, who ever wants to be unhappy?  Of course, everyone wants to be happy!  But it's not everyone who pursues to be happy.

Surely, problems and trials always come our way.   We cannot run away from 'em and we can never elude 'em.  It's just a matter of how we deal with 'em.  If  I get easily down, if I get easily discouraged, if I get easily mad, and if I get easily disheartened, I'll do my best not to be anymore.  Because it is in the state of mind and the matter of the heart that you can still be happy even though you are heavily-laden with such trials.

And so with that, that's my moving on post for today.  Let's stop dwelling in the past and stop being anxious for the future but let us start living for today because it is "the now" that should be lived up.  Remember that we only live once and we must make the most out of it.  :)

  

Tweet

Behind the Scenes of #yrech32

Since today is November's last day and Bonifacio Day but no holiday, allow me to have this huling-hirit post for #yrech32!  I had given you all the glam photos of Cherry Ann's birthday holiday so now let me give you these not-so-glam photos of our bloopers!

The Early Morning No-Ligo Brekky

The Against-the-Light Pictorial

The Umbrella-Photo-Bomber Pictorial

The Jump Shot Fail

The Nga-Nga Experience

The Bedtime Online Marathon

I already miss you, ladies!!!  'Till our next bonding get-away! :)  And thank you for bearing with us, dear blog readers.  'Till the next #tosomtravels diaries! :)

     

Tweet

Café Noriter

There's this episode in Sex and the City when Carrie Bradshaw was dumped by a boyfriend through a post-it (2003).  There's also this local movie, My Amnesia Girl which starred Toni Gonzaga and John Lloyd Cruz that made use of plenty of post-its (2010).  Additionally, Matteo Guidicelli swept Maja Salvador off her feet in real-life through post-its (2012)!  And to further mention, I also have my fair share of post-its here.  Post-its are in, post-its are timeless, and post-its are everywhere in this artsy little café in Cebu, the Café Noriter.

Café Noriter is a Korean coffee and smoothie shop brought here in the Philippines by fellow JCI member, Chimin Yun who is 2014 Executive Vice President of JCI Korea-Daegu Daedeok.  I was glad he was wearing a JCI poloshirt when me and my friends visited the place so I got to introduce myself to him.  He was so hospitable but we only spoke little because he has "little English" as he said and air-quoted.  Unfortunately, I also haven't taken any photo with him because I haven't thought of it!  Oh, how silly I was.  I had taken photos all over his place and of ourselves but not one of him.  Maybe I was just overwhelmed that I had found a co-JCI member who accommodated me well and exchanged business cards with.  

But anyway, I was also mesmerized by the place because it was so colorful, so playful, and so vibrant!  In short, I was so giddy by the sight of it.  Café Noriter is just so clever in making use of all the tiny space they've got.  They have cute nooks installed up-and-down that you will not feel crammed once you are settled inside.  It is just so comfortable like home, sitting barefooted and doing whatever you please.

Moreover, Café Noriter can make you feel like a child again!  It is inspired by a playhouse which houses the most comfortable pillows and huggable bears.  We were literally playing like kids while being there!

And just like kids at play when moms also get us something to drink, the drinks at Café Noriter are extra special.  They are extra sweet as the preference of every child but not to us at all.  So we asked for water to neutralize the sweetness of our drinks.  Hehe.....

Thank you, Café Noriter for a fun-filled afternoon!  And thank you, Chimin Yu for a lovely place!

Lastly, since graffiti is all over the place, I was caught in the act writing mine but I didn't have it on a post-it.  Surely, post-its had been part of many love stories but I scribbled on wood so it will stay there until it will be seen!

  

LIKE Café Noriter on Facebook here! :)  But better visit them in their branches in Cebu and Manila.

Related Post:

Café Tiala Princess Room

Tweet

Feature Friday: Bucket Shrimps

Feature Friday highlights businesses, people, fashion, and basically anything under the sun!

With all the fancy restos and posh resorts we had visited during our latest trip to Cebu for Cherry Ann's birthday, I choose Bucket Shrimps to be my Feature Friday post.  Why?  Reason #1: it is a low-key resto where you can just don your most favorite street wear.  Reason #2: it is a seafood resto where you can eat with your bare hands because that's how seafoods should be eaten.  Reason #3: it is a motoresto (motorist-restaurant) where  you can park and go with a full-loaded tummy.  And reason #4: it is an affordable resto where you can eat and drink all you can because of the 100% yumminess of their dish!

  

Bucket Shrimps serves the best shrimps and mussels in town!  They have it in three sumptuous flavors of sauces:  garlic butter, spicy Cajun, and curry.  The dish was actually simple but heaven when tasted!  It is so delectable and so satisfying that you would want to ask for more cups of rice again and again and again.  T'was a great thing that we visited the place last in our itinerary so we won't worry about bloated stomachs while wearing our swimsuits.   I swear, after eating at Bucket Shrimps, we were catching our breaths upon sitting inside the taxi because we were super full to the brim of our digestive system!

Thank You, Ruth for the Treat! :)

We Give Two Thumbs-Up for Sucking Heads!

Thank You, Bucket Shrimps for a Satisfying Meal!

Visit Bucket Shrimps along Orchid St., Capitol Site, Cebu City for that sucking heads experience! :) 

Related Posts:

My Little Blogging's Sweet Fruit
Redtail Shrimps and More

Fiesta Bay Asian Seafood Restaurant

Buto't Balat Native Dishes and Seafood Restaurant

Tweet

Casa Verde

Photo from Casa Verde's Website

It was my then boardmate in Iligan and roommate in Cebu, Engr. Jennifer Felisilda who first introduced me to Casa Verde.  She always bragged about their baby back ribs and by the time I tried one, I couldn't ever forget how divine it tasted!  It was superb to the max!  The tenderness of the meat melts in your mouth, the sweetness of the sauce lingers in your lips, and the hint of spices plays a myriad of flavors in your tongue.  After that night in Ramos, Cebu City, I officially declared baby back ribs as my favorite dish in the world!

Casa Verde is a Spanish term for "green house", the color of the ancestral family house in Ramos which became the very first Casa Verde restaurant in 2002. (source:  Casa Verde's official website) For more than a decade, the humble restaurant grew to become an American-style casual dining chain of restaurants.  And I am elated I have had visited their Ayala branch in Cebu for a quick lunch the day after Cherry Ann's birthday last week.  With that, I was overjoyed to try the new additions to their menu aside from their house specialty, baby back ribs.

Giant Burger

Giant Shake

Carbonara

So for serious eats, visit Casa Verde in any of their branches listed here in Cebu and also in Manila.  Oh, how I wish there'll be Casa Verde in Ozamiz too so I don't have to wait years to have a taste of their back ribs again.

Ruth Getting Ready for the Umph of the Hefty Ribs

Quennie Enjoying the Mouth-Watering Ribs

See You Next Time, Casa Verde! :)

Related Posts:

My Little Blogging's Sweet Fruit

Bucket Shrimps

Fiesta Bay Asian Seafood Restaurant

Buto't Balat Native Dishes and Seafood Restaurant

Tweet