So how have you been?

Me? I was neck deep in work and more importantly, in offline life, since the last time I blogged:
1. Arn and I had new water pipes installed in our home. The original pipes were more than 20 years old and one of them had leaked, resulting to a P4k water bill, sigh. The good news is that having new pipes brought forth a surge of water we didn’t know we had – and it came just in time for summer, how about that?;
2. We filed our ITRs – a whole month before the deadline too! *pats self on the back*;
3. I art-directed shoots galore (at least 4 shoots a week) for the upcoming issue of WE. Many many behind-the-scene pics are chronicled semi-regularly on our phlog;
4. I worked on the Claycakes website – it’s quite deep so as of now it’s about 90% done. If you’re getting married, do consider booking with Karla. Her cakes are always fun and witty and best of all, they taste reaaaally yummy. I was (secretly) craving for her chocolate/lemon crumb cake with fudge topping the whole time I was working on the site – yun pala Marbee asked her to make me one as a gift when…
5. I turned thirty- another year older last week. (:


My Claycakes birthday cake, a gift from Marbs — how thoughtful! I told her “it’s the wedding cake Arn and I never had.”

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Yay, my very first CafePress “Pinoy Street Food” model, no less than Ms. Marite Irvine of one of Manila’s top ad agencies. (Thanks for giving her the apron as a wedding present in the first place, Shei!).

If you (or if you know anyone who’s) purchased anything from either of my little shops, please please don’t hesitate to send me a photo showing the item in use (ahem, Luis P!). I’d also love to know how the quality of the printing is since I don’t have access to the items myself.

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TMC shirts in American Beauty red, Atmosphere, Moroccan Blue, and Rattan.
We interrupt the rampant Andong Agimat plugging to make way for another important Arn book-related announcement:The Mythology Class shirts will soon be available at all BRANDED SHIRTS outlets in SM Megamall, SM Southmall, SM Manila, Alabang Town Center, and MarketMarket. Get them while they’re hot! (Click here to view larger images.)

*BRANDED is a division of Spoofs Ltd. Inc.

How very interesting – a knitted wedding! (I remember Nest telling me about this when we saw each other a few days ago.) Everything, from the bride’s gown, wedding cake, flowers and confetti were knitted, and it all began with this invitation for contributions from knitters all over the UK. Check out the photo galleries here and here.

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Ahh yes, more kitchen adventures coming right up…



My Arn and I discovered C2’s Salted Egg Rice last year when our dining companions Carlo & Nina made us try it. Since then dining at Shang has been a no-brainer, SER plus a varying viand became our default meal. But because it would cost too much to keep going back everytime we had a hankering for it, I tried my hand at making a homemade version. Arn thinks I’ve quite succeeded, thank you. So here’s how my version is done:

1. Drizzle about a tablespoonful or two of EVOO in a pan.
2. Drop in some chopped garlic and a few slices of anchovies. Let it sizzle for a few minutes.
3. When the garlic turns golden, toss in a diced salted egg (or two if you like). Let the egg “melt” a bit.
4. Dump in a bowlful of cooked rice. Mix it in with the egg and garlic. The rice will turn yellow-orange but don’t worry, that’s a good thing.

That’s it! And because we had some in the ref, I sprinkled shredded squid flakes on top to add a little crunch. Try it and then let me know if you like it. (:

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By the way this is totally unrelated but the picture on the right shows the banana bread muffins I made this week. Hehe, I just wanted to put it on the blog because they came out pretty (and yummy too). Recipe c/o Lori B.
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So I’m off to Cebu with the WE team tomorrow. In the meantime please visit this link and let me know if you’d like to order any of the items we’ve put up for sale. (:

If you were in Megamall recently, you might have chanced upon this 6 ft x 4 ft mural of Level-Up’s new game RF Online in the basement, next to Netopia. Uhm, I’m not a gamer so why am I posting it? Because my Arn illustrated it so am being a proud wifey. (: Hope you get to see it before they take it down.

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And for us QC dwellers, here’s yet another reason to visit Megamall – particularly the Cinderella boutique. Our dear fashionable friend Tippi‘s designs are now available (along with four other young designers) at a section called Createur ala Mode. If you think what she’s wearing is proof enough that she can make unique, funky and functional clothes, please do swing by and check out the Pret-a-Party and Lounge Lizard lines. More pics from the launch are here.

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I recently told Itchyworms‘ Kelvin and Jugs that they should’ve been part of Ultraelectromagneticjam because I think they would’ve done justice to the Eheads’ music (unlike … a few other performers who were, i.m.h.o., kinda miscast in the album), being excellent musicians and most importantly, huge fans themselves. Sayang…
But on a brighter note, it seems that their brave new album has reached the ears of real Noontime Show folk. Read Jim Paredes‘ letter to the ‘Worms. (via Chino’s journal).
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Did you read it? If you’ve given up on watching local TV like Arn and I – and apparently the Worms and their audience – have, let’s just hope that they, the showbiz people – or at least the few, true artists in that world – do go back to who they were in the first place (as Mr. Jim wrote himself): “artists with messages to convey and not artistas who are second guessing what the masa wants to hear”. Kudos to the ‘Worms for reminding them (and bravo to their gals too – hi Nix and Jen!)

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And last but not the least, before I go back to “all work, no blog” mode, ask yourself this question: Is producing a Filipino version of a foreign trend your idea of creativity? Do you use a “peg?” Read the rest here.
Thank you, Rome, for writing this article. May we all strive to be original in everything we do.