HAPPY NEW YEAR

As the coming new year approaches,
may your belly be always full,
your pockets always stuffed with cash,
your head always spinning in from alcohol,
and may you always land on a warm bed with somebody you love!

There's a light of hope,
there's a light of hope,
in our minds and in our hearts,
I'm glad to find what you were looking for in life,
the joy and peace of life!

But most importantly,
may you find happiness and contentment in everything you desire.

So lets party like its 1908!!!

God Bless us all!!!

PARENTAL ADVICE

After making a bad decision, has anybody told you that someday you are going to experience being a parent? I got a lot of that when I was in still with my parents, and they remind me each time I come home at dawn after a party, after I haven't come home after a day, after not going home for two days, after not coming home after 3 days, and almost everytime that I upset them. Those were troubled times for me. I knew that they were right, and if they had a heart condition I could make them drop dead the second I make that mistake. Good thing that my grandparents on both side only have diabetis!

Teens nowadays have a hard time digesting the facts of life. They take for granted all the things that they spoon feed us. Perhaps because they know that it will take years for them to face the problems that we adults are experiencing. (Yes, I'm an adult...but it doesn't mean I'm fully matured!) It seems that "live for the moment" is the motto of this generation. But that is only one way to look at it. There are always two sides of the coin. Whatever happened to "look forward into the future"? We always miss the meaning of "goals" from" dreams".

After having a week old baby, I too have go back to all the wisdom that my parents passed on to me. It is not true that all the things they said, (most of them came out of anger) went in one ear and came out of the other. No. I have always kept them in me. I just haven't applied them yet.

Thanks to everyone who wished us well these holidays. You can catch us online almost every night. Have a Merry Christmas and a meaningful New Year!

Ciao!

Dennis, Lany and Diego (don't you every call me Dieg-dieg! ok???)

Gifts gallore!!! Yung isang gift sa harap nahirapan kaming hulaan kung ano yun...kala namin ng una ay...suklay! Baby tub pala! hehehe! Thank You all!

Diego Luis's Welcome Party December 22, 2005.

Tito Charles, Ate Weng and Ate Raquel

MERRY CHRISTMAS

This is probably the best Christmas gift that a person could ever ask for...but ofcourse there is always the PS 2! Joke!

Today is not only Christ's birthday, it is also my Honeys day! Happy Birthday Honey!!!

'yun lang po at magpapadede pa ako!

Merry Christmas to all!

From,

Dennis, Lany and Diego

Diego and Tita Mayet

Our Kuya Conrad and Ate Weng gave Diego a very nice welcome party. But where is the Adobo Kuya Con??? Joke lang po! Your family has warmed our hearts this Christmas. Godbless you all!

Thank you for all the welcome gifts that you showered us. Merry Christmas to you all!

We can't stop taking pictures of this cute little boy. Time to buy a Canon EOS 350! Hehehehe!

We might change the name of this site to "The Diego-spot". What do you think?

Pinoy na pinoy ba ang ilong ko?

Medyo may pagka-rapper yata ang anak ko...'wag lang sana niya tularan si Vanilla Ice.

FIRST TIME PARENTS

There are a lot of things that happened to us in the year 2005. We got married in January, Lany got pregnant in March, I passed the drivers test last August, we bought a car before September, and now we have a new baby in our life! God is good because we are blessed with his love, and He takes care of our us. (Is this really me speaking???)

My wife labored for more than 24 hours. Lets see if I can remember it...

December 17, 2005
6:30am - After coming out of the toilet she discovered that she is leaking...oh-oh! its the first sign that she'll deliver! She decided to stay at home to observe herself. I'm glad that shes a nurse!

10:00am - I told Grace and my colleagues at work of what happened at home and they all said that I should take her to the hospital. After the first Vaginal Egg Collection the news spread inside the Operating Theater and our IVF consultant and friend Dr. Mooza told me that I should bring my wife to the hospital for a CTG (I don't know what the hell CTG stands for. At first I thought that its one of those "Counter Terrorist Unit" like the one in "24") CTG is a test to monitor the baby's heart beat.

10:30am - In Bahrain, I was taught to drive like a Bahraini by my driving instructor Mr. Yousif. He taught me everything he knew, especially his motto "When in Bahrain, drive like a F1 driver..."Its his version of the "When in Rome do as the Roman's do" saying. I rushed home to pick up my wife.

11:30am - Mama Pajama wasn't in a hurry to deliver so we stopped by Mega Mart in Manama to pick up a few essentials.

12:30pm - Lany was admitted to Ward 16. She is definitely going to deliver!

2:00pm - I left work to be with with my wife.

6:00pm - Went to Geant to pick up more things for our stay at the hospital.

8:30pm - I headed back to the hospital from our apartment carrying a lot of stuff.

10:00pm - I went to hostel to do the laundry... because they don't let the husbands to stay in the ward overnight.

11:00pm - Dr. Malati told her that they might give her a medicine to induce labor. She has been leaking for more than 12hours now, and she needs to take an antibiotic to help her.

December 18, 2005

1:30am - It's my sisters birthday! Happy Birthday Babs! Lany called me because they will be bringing her to the delivery room. The baby has come down near the cervix about 60%, but her cervix has only dilated about 1.5cm. Induction of labor is still an option but they decided to wait for a little more time. Good thing that I was a staff at the hospital, otherwise they wouldn't have let me inside the labor room.

3:30am - The baby has progressed about 80% and her cervix is now 2.5cm. There was a cute doctor who helped rapture the membrane. At this time I went back to the hostel to do more laundry while we waited for the right time. Phsycho therapist should really recommend laundry to patients because it relieves stress.

7:00am - Still no baby. The pain of labor is now taking its toll on Lany. She is now taking Nitrous Oxide to kill the pain but she is still dilated 2.5cm!

8:00am - She has progressed from 2.5cm to 4cm. Now she is steadily opening up, but the pain becomes more as the contractions become more frequent.

10:55am - She delivered a 3.2Kg baby boy who scared us to death when he didn't cry. They assured as Diego was going to be ok, but I had my doubts because there were 4 nurses attending him plus a pediatrician. I saw my boys body turn blue and I almost cried. They tried everything to make him cry... after a minute we heard a cry. He sounds weak so he was rushed to the NICU for further observation.

Many thanks to the Nurses and Doctors of the OB department especially Dr. Amal for delivering the baby, Ligi, Mary, Sister Annie and to the others who helped us. God Bless you all!

more blogs and pictures to come! stay tuned!

Father and son having an intimate time together.

There is a strange feeling that we felt about the baby. We meet strangers but we never have strong feelings for them until we actually become friends...but this guy that we just met swept us off our feet.

Diego stayed at the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit for further observation. It was only tonight that we had a quality time with him.

Mama Pajama and Diego.

DIEGO LUIS was born on the 18th of December, 2005. He is the pride and joy of his parents Dennis and Lany.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DON!!!

from left to right Naks, Ed, Allan, Dennis, Don and Don's brother in law.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AHRON!!! (Daddy Zaldy, Ahron Romee and Mommy Grace)

Alawi family: Mommy Fe, Jinan and Daddy Hameed

Jinan's Birthday Cake

Jinan and her cousin Layla.

December 12, 2005 : HAPPY BIRTHDAY JINAN!!!

ULAM DAY 5

We didn't cook anything on day 5, we took home some food from the birthday party. Masarap talaga ang libre! =>

ULAM DAY 4

Sorry late na ang mga updates ko. Marami kasi kaming lakad ng mga nakaraang araw. Anyways, day 4 ay very pinoy ang ulam namin. We had Ampalaya Guisado with pork. This is one of my wife's special dish. We also had the chance to score Magnolia Ice Cream after
church. Wala ng mas malaki pa sa pint dun sa nabilan naming cold store e. We are planning to buy more ice cream next week kapag naligaw ulit kami dun.

ULAM DAY 3

One of the best part of being married is coming home knowing that there is a hot homecooked meal ready for you. My wife cooked a lovely Beef and Mushroom dish. It taste like just like Lengua (Ox Tongue). It makes me wonder what todays dish will be?

ULAM DAY 2

We forgot to take pictures of our
'ulam for the day", thats why I used a few tricks of my own on the fried daing na bangus. The bulalo is our left over from last nights dinner at Borakay. Yes. They spelled it with a "K". We promise to do better tomorrow. Lany will be cooking something with beef...sana lang hindi corned beef! hehehe!

Take a good look at the bangus, and you'll see different images like a lion, or a vagina. Take your pick!

ISANG LINGGONG ULAM: "LONGANISA AT ITLOG"

After browsing the blogsites about food, we decided that we dedicate this week for food. Think of this as a reality show ok. We are not going to showcase freshly prepared fiesta food. We just want you to see what a real life home cooked meal looks like. Because not all of us have the time and inspiration to be a chef.

Todays brunch is last nights overcooked Pampanga's Best longanisa with fried egg and overnight rice (ito daw ang right translation ng Bahaw). For the on the go couple, there is nothing like an easy to cook sausage and fried eggs. Considering that we are both on a day off, we managed to still be lazy and stay in bed. No need to over indulge our palates, a simple dish will do.

Tomorrow, we'll be featuring another dish...erm...we'll see what we have. Got no plans yet. But I'm sure that it will be as delicious as todays dish.

PARA SA MGA HALIPAROT!

May nahanap ako na mapapagtripan sa internet kung wala kang magawa. Might be the best questionaire in Tagalog ever. Check this out http://www.tristancafe.com/quizzes/kerengkeng/

SURPRISE SURPRISE!!! (NOT!)

Our blogsite didn't make the final cut of the Philippine Blog Awards! And I am not surprised why. I don't even see the reason why I was chosen as a semifinalist for photoblogging anyway. All I can say is that there are more important issues than being the hottest blog of the year. Just as long as there are people like you who still reads my stuff and ok lang!

Our baby is coming soon, and we are very excited to see him. I've been keeping my driving skills in constant practice and our car in tip-top shape for the big day, and I hope that everything will run smoothly. Today we'll be picking up the baby crib at Mothercare. Thanks to Sarah and Hamad!

more pictures to come!

Ito si Mamang Driver na walang pambili ng sapatos kaya pati yung tsinelas sa kubeta ay gamit niya...ok lang kasi na ka Ralph Lauren cap naman sya!

One morning, we decided frolic under the sun. This is the Marina Club. Behind are the tall condominiums of Juffair.

Mama pajama on her 9th month of pregnancy.

SURPRISE, SURPRISE!

My daily ritual consist of kissing my wife, going to the toilet, driving to work (pansin nyo walang breakfast?), checking my our beehive (yung site na to), and checking my favorite blogsites. The first blog that I'll read would probably be the first one on our list of links. Besides, I need my daily dose of comedy before I start my boring day. To my surprise I found out that they released the list of Pinoy Blog Awards finalist! I rushed to finish Mr. D's blog entry to see if I made the cut....

In one category, I was glad to see Anne and Edmun's site. This little girl has gone a long way since she asked my advice on how to blog. But sad to say that our site wasn't in that category. Instead, I found that we are listed as a semifinalist for "Photoblogging". Ehh??? I asked myself several times "why did I get nominated for that category?". I didn't post a lot of of photos? But whatever it is that they found on "THE HONEYSPOT", I'm just glad that we are recognized.

For the category Blogger of the year, I'm upset that Jessica Zafra didn't enter the contest. But if she did, I bet that she will get the award. Check her out at www.twistedbyjessicazafra.blogspot.com

Up next on the honeyspot...more photos to come!

OVER A CUP OF STEAMING PEANUT BUTTER

Yesterday, me and my wife went out to do our shopping for this month. It is very timely because we hardly have anything in our freezer except for a bag of ice cubes. As we entered the newly designed superstore of Geant we came across the section dedicated to Christmas Decors. There were about 5 ugly looking Trees showcased on a pile of Christmas lights for the desperate holiday shoppers. Kinda ironic when you think about it… a Christmas promotion in the middle east??? You must be kidding! But to the management of the superstore, it's only commerce. Christmas sells you know.

As we walked in awe of the decors, I couldn't help but reminisce the memories of Christmas past. Those precious memories when I was still a young boy, and my dear departed relatives were still alive. I remember my grandfather would prepare his priced chicken for a year to be slaughtered before Noche Buena. My dad would make me a canon made of bamboo that I loved to play with. It made a muffled booming noise because I would stuff it with a tin can or a piece of cloth as my weapon of mass destruction. The usually dim street of Santiago would be lit up like a cabaret from the Christmas lights that neighbors put on their houses.

During Noche Buena, the kids would be lining up the buffet table and try to make the tallest sandwich for dinner. My grandfather's roasted chicken would be the competing with the ham that was given by his Chinese kumpare on the table. And after dinner he would make the traditional hot chocolate beverage that tasted more like peanut butter rather than chocolate. Those memories are so special that I could smell cup of steaming peanut butter under my noses as I walked pass the over decorated tree.

We bought Santa's hat with disco lights and a box of dancing lights for the apartment. After that I asked my wife to move on…all that holiday spirit made me home sick. This holiday, I wish that I can make our Christmas Merry and memorable for my wife…and our little baby boy (?). It surely won't be the same. But I hope next year will be different.

Happy Holidays!!!

PS: Congratulations to Gigi and Ryan for a bouncing baby boy!

EVAT

Balitang TFC muna....

Ipinatupad na daw sa ang EVAT sa mga airport ng Pinas. Sa mga expat na di nakakaalam at di pa uuwi ng Pinas this year siguro ay ok lang sa kanila. Pero magugulat ka kung sasabihin ko na lahat ng bibilhin mo sa abroad lalo na ang mga electronics, kapag dinala mo sa Pinas ay lalagyan nila ng 10% EVAT!

Para sa isang ordinaryong mangagawa na katulad ko, mabigat yun. Mamimigay ka na nga ng pasalubong sa mga kamaganak at kaibigan mo tapos ita-tax ka pa ng gobyerno? Ano ba ang kinalaman nila kung ibibili ko ang tatay ko ng imported na alak? Gagalisin na nga yung tao sa pag-inom na Ginebra pati ba naman yung alak na minsan lang niya matitikman lalagyan pa ng tax!

E kung ibili ko ng imported na pabango ang nanay at mga kapatid ko para makalanghap naman sila ng pabango na hindi imitation, at matanggal ang amoy tuyo na kinain nila ng tanghalian bakit nila lalagyan ng tax?

Tax ka na nga sa mga mangongotong sa iyo paglabas mo ng NAIA, may tax pa rin sa loob! Besides nagbabayad din naman ang mga expat ng mandatory tax sa POEA kada uwi namin sa Pinas para lang makabalik at magtrabaho ng malayo sa mga mahal namin sa buhay di ba? Masakit lang sa loob na ang mga bagay na iuuwi mo na nasa loob ng balikbayan box mo ay kakalkalin para malagyan ng EVAT. Bakit di muna nila sugpuin ang graft and corruption bago nila pagtripan ang mga pinaghirapan ng mga bayani ng makabagong panahon? Kawawa namana ng mga domestic helpers at ang mga taong mababa ang kinikita sa abroad. Minsan na nga lang makakauwi bibigyan pa nila ng sakit ng ulo.

THE CONTROL FREAKS BANNED FRIENDSTER

Hi everyone! It's been a long while since I updated our blog (sounds familiar ba?). Life sucks! (really familiar eh??) Our broadband at home was cancelled for over a month now by lawless bandits (we call them local servers). My friend from the internet shop (in which my home PC is connected to) told me that there had been an inspection in our area for illegal internet and satellite cable connections, thats why he had to cancel my subscription for a month. He had to remove all the cables visible to the inspectors. Now its really annoying to stay at home with just the TV for entertainment. Now, if you missed my blog entries then you can blame the government! Hehehehe!

The same guy that owns the internet shop on my block is the same guy who runs the network at my work place. He can be very friendly outside but be also follows protocols at work. Since I work for the government, they are so strict about the websites that the employees visit. Ofcourse, number one on their list is Porn. Now who the hell will visit a pornsite using the hospital PC? You will be surprised to know who.

Anyways, one of the latest sites that was blocked other than www.jandbabe.friendsterblogs.com is www.friendster.com! I believe that friendster has been very instrumental to the Pinoy expat to be in contact with their friends...but why the hell did they block it? I can only think of one reason...maybe they use a lot of their working hours visiting friendster? Or to the web administrator friendster = to porn. They are so unfriendly! So to whom it may concern, If I were you I would look at the major problems of our LAN connection (this includes speeding up the connection and upgrading the PC's you pricks!) instead of picking on useful sites such as friendster.

DON AND ED TO THE RESCUE!!!

I don't know where I will be without friends. If they make pocket size friends my pockets will be full. But those exceptional ones I will surely carry close to my heart...Drama!

Early in the morning I had a problem with my car. As soon as I left the parking lot and turned the steering wheel to the right, I knew that there is something wrong with Tita Cory (our HRV is golden yellow). There was a sound coming from the steering...kinda like turning a rusty lock from a nuclear sub...When I reached work I'm still bothered by the sound which made me pop the hood. As I might have guessed! There is a leak from my steering oil reservoir! The oil is down to an inch. The alternator is soaked with transmission oil and I got a little scared. I heard about cars that burn because of leaks. But theres no need to hurry, Don's brother is my reliable mechanic. He can fix it really good.

After bringing it to the garage, I was told that it will take time to fix my shit colored car. There is no way I can go back to work asap. The only way to get back quickly is ti call Don the reliable! Thanks Don for bringing me back to the hospital...I'll make a copy of the Kama Sutra DVD for you dont worry! hehehehe!

And when I needed a ride back to the garage in the afternoon there is always the dependable Ed. He's the real deal! This guy will always be there to help. I have never heard him say no to me. Kudos to both of you! (what is kudos by the way???)

MY NANNY IS LIKE A SATELLITE

It’s another day of work for me. Yesterday, I thought that I have already finished my report to my boss, but after he browsed the papers he saw that there are a few things missing… that’s why today, it will be another day facing the office PC.

In order to finish my papers, I needed to go to Ate Raq’s for her files. But tough luck! She has an appointment for an x-ray so I need to wait for a little while.

Pass our narrow hallway that is being renovated (it looks like a Gap store because they removed the ceiling panels. Now everything up there is exposed. I like it that way, it’s rugged.) I overheard the nurses having a conversation while they take their morning coffee. If all the nurses are inside one room at the same time, then they must be talking of something very important! I must get inside the pantry for a scoop! Hehehehe!

I have a bunch of interesting co-workers. Sometimes you can’t help but compare my workplace to the news room of CNN! One girl in particular sounds like the late Inday Badiday because of her rough, annoyingly-high-pitched-raspy-voice. No rumor can escape the pointy ears of our staff! We are always up to date, and sometimes the news is being broadcasted even if it hasn’t happened yet! I think you call it precognition…

I walked in, and the news is about… Sarah Geronimo and Mark Bautista… Not as juicy as I thought the topic will be, but on a lazy day (like any other day after the previous boss had been booted out…) it is good news! Rumor has it that Sarah and Mark were invited to a Sheikh’s house for dinner. Apparently, the kids of the Royal Family are a big fan on the singing couple. How? We’ll the Royal Filipina Housemaid’s watch TFC (or ABS-CBN) at home while they baby sit the kids, that’s why! If the maids can influence them with a small thing like music, then I guess those kids learned more than that! One time my friend Shaikah cussed in Tagalog, which didn’t surprise me as much because she already told me that she had a Pinay nanny when she was a kid. Kudos to our kababayan!

Back to Sarah and Mark…

The couple was invited to a lavish banquet at the Sheikh’s residence, and was asked to perform their famous songs. And at the end of the evening Sarah was given a set of gold jewelry and an envelope full of cash! Mark received an expensive watch and probably some cash. People pay so much for good entertainment here. Especially when they are royalty.

And as for me…I’m still waiting for Ate Raq’s to comeback so that I can get my much needed files.

More coffee please!

Dear Janners

Dear Janers,

Kamusta ka na??? Miss ka na namin dito. This is the first weekend na wala ka, and it all came to me last night na we look forward to the weekends and day off's kasi alam namin na magkakasama uli tayo. Yun nga lang nag-evacuate ka na dito sa ating maliit na playground. Pero di naman kami totally nag-goodbye sa iyo, kasi alam namin na magkikita pa tayo…di ba???

I'm glad that you liked the video that we made for you. Matagal ko na talaga binabalak gawin yun para sa iyo kasi special ka….special child ka naming! Hehehe! Siguro napapansin mo na most of the time that we are out lagi akong may dalang digicam. It is the longest video I have ever made. Nag-enjoy naman ako sa paggawa kasi nababalikan ko yung mga pics and the memories that went with it. Mas may meaning kapag nilagyan mo ng music di ba? Si Papi Ed nga pala ang pumili ng song ng Nikelback (tama ba spelling?). Yun daw ang theme song/favorite song mo.

Dun nga pala sa mga taong di ko nacover sa video, pasensya na po! Kasi limited ang time ko at di mag-fit ang sched ko sa mga ginagawa ko. Tambak nga ang paper works ko sa trabaho e. Daig ko pa ang nagtake ng accounting sa paggawa ng costing, charts at graphs. Hope you guys understand.

Dapat nga bumili ka ng car jan…at h'wag scooter! Kasi naiimagine na kita na para kang character dun sa movie na "Dumb and Dumber", sa scene na umakyat sila sa Aspen Colorado ridding a scooter. Magyeyelo ang sipon mo, at for sure pagtatawanan ka nila pagdating mo sa trabaho kasi may yelo ka sa ilong! At kapag na-ihi ka sa upuan mahihirapan kang tumayo kasi didikit ka na sa upuan. Hehehe!

Ok mahaba na ito…sulat na lang ako sa iyo next time. Regards kay Nonoy at Dennis! Miss na rin namin ang company ninyo. Sulat kayo uli ok?

ps: dito nga pala sa spoof ko ng My Sassy Girl, nahirapan akong paputiin kayo...pero mas succesful naman ang pagputi ni Papi kaysa sa iyo. hehehe!

Nagmamahal,

Dennis a.k.a Vin Diesel (mumtaz)

THE BEST PANCAKE

Aunt Jemima is the best pancake the honeyspot has ever tasted! Perfect for the lazy ass husband like me! => We discovered this product when we went shopping at Geant Supermaket a year ago. The name had a recall to it. I probably heard it from my cousin Geoff or my friend Sarah. And then when I read "just add water" I told myself that this is it! The only problem that I encountered was, after adding water it looked like a sticky substance... it looked nothing like the one on the box! Aha! Thats the time when it occured to me that it needs to be cooked. Talino no? After cooking we tasted the fluffiest and the tastiest pancake we ever had! Sarap!

This is one of the few products that I like at Geant. I hope that when we come back there will be a fresh supply of the long awaited ice cream "Ben and Jerry's". Siguro kaya wala silang maibigay sa akin nung una kasi I was asking for a "Tom and Jerry's ice cream". Nyee!

SMALLVILLE

Why are most superheroes sterile and frigid? Is it because they wear tight-stretchy-pants? Or is it because they wear their underwear on top of it? I can only speculate for now.

One thing I know is that I hate watching "Smallville". I've seen the show a couple of times because I wanted to know how different the story line goes from the original Superman. But to my dismay, I found that the show lacks substance. I'm a Superman fan, but I hated the fact that Jerry Siegel turned a superhuman into a shmuck when he is not wearing his costume. He always manages to keep himself out of the limelight for some reason. He avoids direct confrontation, romance, sex, and always keeps himself on a safe distance. If he was real I probably wouldn't like Clark Kent. He is too good for a person, always self-righteous and tries to make himself weak when he is not. To top it off, why are superheroes super jinx? Remember the case of Spiderman?

It would have been a good show to tell you the truth. The only thing that I like about Smallville is Kristin Kreuk! She is super cute! Now why would Clarke Kent pass on a girl like this? Is there something wrong with his mojo? I would like to think that he is just being careful because he might break Lana Lang (is she the same as Lois Lane?) from his super strength. Overall, Smallville is not my favorite show…not until Clark Kent decides to take control of his life. We are in a generation based in reality...so why not put some of it in a fictional charactes life?

FRIENDS

I have been watching Friends reruns on channel ONE and MBC 4 for more than a year now. Both stations show the same sitcom on different time slots and different seasons too. But there is only one thing I notice on every episode, you can almost see Jennifer Aniston's nipple every time! If this is the producers sick idea of keeping the ratings up, then it definitely worked. But nipple or no nipple, Friends will always be on my list of great shows to watch. It never fails to make me laugh.

AUBREY

A picture can be interpreted in a lot of ways, like the one that I took last night at the Bahrain Mall. There were circus professionals who delighted people with their display of talent, but this one amazed me....Lets try and analyze this picture.
*******
A child was mesmerized by the size of the couple. He is probably wondering if he will grow up to be as tall as them. The child got scared and peed on the floor...
******

The couples parents made them eat a lot of Star Margarine when they were kids. And as a result, they grew up be freaks without a fashion sense. Only Boy Abunda can get away with this crappy attire!
******

Long legs? I wonder what else is long with them? =>
******

I grew up with 80's music, and they actually made me think of the Spandau Ballet's song "Gold"!
******

Everybody in the background doesn't seem to care about these gigantic couple. Probably too busy thinking about Eid (end of Ramadan).
******

According to the US survey about men and sex, Men tend to think about sex every minute. Hmmm...must be amazing to watch them make out and perform sex! bwahahahahahaa!
******

The ostrich feathers that they carry compliments their height!
******

It's almost 2:00 am, and I should stop thinking about these guys. For me they are just too weird to me remembered.

Happy Birthday Mommy Lou! (A picture of my parents giving their wedding speech to us. Parang makulit ba ang dad ko? Oo makulit yan! Diyan nagmana ang....kapatid ko! hehehe!)

BIRYANI BLUES

In the middle east, one of the most disgusting thing that you can tell a Pinoy aside from telling him "you're mom is a whore" (pu...bleep! bleep!), is that you like Indian food (lets not give credit to the Arabs by calling it Arabic food ok? click on the links to know the difference.). But then again why not? Indian food is full of aromatic spices, the ones that we are not accustomed to. Well, curry is not on my list since we've grown familiar with this spice.

A week ago, I had a craving for this kind of food...(P........!!! magkamatayan na kapag bukas may nang-alaska sa akin ha?!). Huh??? I can't explain it man....Maybe because there was one time, about four years ago when I had to do overtime at work, and there isn't any food around except Burgerland BDF. They used to serve luch there. There was also this nice Pinoy guy who gave me a taste of Mutton Masala. He said that this is the only thing that he has that taste a little like pinoy food. All the rest taste like shit! (joke!) And so I tried...mmmm...taste like Mechado with curry! Bingo! Lunch at last! But at that time I can only eat a small portion of it, because I knew that the soft yummy thing inside my mouth is mutton. Overtime became a lifestyle for me from then on, and Masala has been a stapple every now and then. (huh?)

So thats my story...Indian food is not bad at all. It just takes a little getting used too. I know for a fact that the Powerpuff Girls are made of it. "Sugar and Spice (curry to! pusta?!!) and everything nice".

"I would like to thank Ed "The Navy Seal" for providing the Miller Lite for tonights blog."

JACKED-UP-CAR-STEREO

Right now I found time to back up my massive mp3 library. In a span of 4 years I managed to come up with a large collection of my favorite songs. And most of it are downloaded from the internet...I'm an mp3 junkie! I like the feel of finding the nicest songs on the internet in their highest quality. Wala lang...I just find it amusing to get free songs. I never bought a single original audio CD since then.

During the days when mp3 players are still expensive and new, I bought myself a Creative mp3 player...yung 32Mb pa yun. The shit cost me a lot of money, but it served its purpose. Now, I learned my lesson about digital music and storage, thats why I only burn my mp3's on CD's. It's cheaper and safer!

Thanks to Jan for the car stereo adaptor. Now I don't have to buy a new stereo for the car. I just plug in my CD/MP3 walkman in and voila! I got a jukebox ready to play music. And the original speakers that I got from my honda ain't that bad too! Thats why nowadays I drive as slow as I can so that I can savor the music.

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY HONEYSPOT

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY HONEYSPOT!!!

I am proud that in a span of one year I got to make 3,700 visitors read my thoughts. Well, it’s probably more than that because our counter was installed maybe 3 months from October. But nevertheless, “The Honeyspot” had been an inspiration for some of my friends to follow the road to blog.

I have learned a lot of things from this blog. I have me a lot of friends who constantly made it a point to open this site everytime that they open their computers! Thanks to you all! Keep reading our entries.

Please visit the links below. Yan ang mga inspiration ko besides my wife and little baby Diego.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ANNALYNE!!! Ganda ng pagka-edit ko ha! Anyways, hope you like it. Pwede mong ipadevelop yan. - From ate and kuya of the honeyspot.

RECAP OF THE WEEK

I'm sorry bloggers for I have sinned. Its been a week since my last blog.

We've been so busy these past weeks. Aside from our Queen Bee getting sick 3 times in the last two months, we were also busy with other stuff. One of which was to participate in the "Medical Mission 2", sponsored by the Tau Gamma Phi and O.W.W.A. Bahrain.

Overall, it was the best! We get to spend time with our colleagues and friends. It was probably the first time that we mixed buisness with pleasure. And to top it all, we helped our fellow OFW's who needed the basic medical service. And its all for free!

Carlo Casal, RN who is the president of the Tau Gamma Phi Bahrain Chapter gave awarm speech that day. He explained the need of the OFW for medical attention as well as the OFW's need for the company of his fellow Pinoy. He said that some of the people who came, did not need medical attention, they just needed to be around Pinoy's. I had patients who came to me saying that. They were overwhelmed with the gathering of Pinoy's in one spot. And in a way, just being there made everyone feel at home. I can totally comprehend. Cause right now I'm stuggling from a bout of home sickness.

Many thanks to the people who made the "Medical Mission 2" a great success! 154 patients in a span of 6 hours while having fun is good. Oh! You should have heard my wife laugh so hard that day! I would like to thank Gulf Daily News, Bahrain Tribune and Abante Middle East for the pictures (OO! Lahat ng diaryo andun ang mrs ko! Di ko nga rin alam kung bakit e.) Many thanks to Kuya Bong Belvis, Carlo and Dr. Ivan for inviting us and sharing the nice experience to us. We are glad to be of service. Next time po ulit!

MABUHAY ANG MGA OFW AT, ANG SAMBAYANANG FILIPINO!!!

Janjan, Cecile, Vin Diesel and Lany. So where the f*#k is Ed??? We missed you buddy!

Medical Technologists in action: Free Blood Typing, Hemoglobin and Urinalysis Exam to all OFW's. Mabuhay ang mga OFW's!

Medical Mission 2 at the OWWA Philippine Embassy Kingdom of Bahrain. BDF Hospital Nurses in action.

DEAR ED

Dear Ed,

Wazzup????

First of all, nice car pare! Feeling ko ako si Vin Diesel ng sumakay ako dun. Lalagyan mo ban g hydraulics yun para tumalon-talon?

Oo nga pala pare, naisip kita mga ilang linggo na. Kapag ikinasal ka na ano nga pala ang ipapalit mo sa pangalan mo? Dapat cool muslim name para outstanding ka! May mga name suggestions ako para sa iyo. Sana ay magustuhan mo para may mapili ka.

1. Mohammad Ali – Ito pare for sure matatakot sila sa iyo. Pangalan pa lang astig na kasi malufet na boxingero ito. Maganda ito para kapag darating ka na puede akong sumigaw ng “The Champ is here!” kaya lang kung sa Pinas ko isisigaw iyon ay baka ang akalain nila ikaw yung mascot ng Jollibee na si Mr. Champ.

2. Karim Abdul Jabbar – Isa pa ito sa favorite ko. Di ko nga alam na muslim name ito nung bata ako e. Yun nga lang, baka macriticize ka sa height mo…

3. Haji – Ito ang bagay para sa iyo. Pangalan pa lang kilabot na. Kapag tinawag kitang Hajji ang iisipin nila isa kang “kilabot ng mga kolehiyala”! Ang guapo ng dating pre!

4. Abdul – Ito daw ang short-cut ng Abdulla sa Arabic. Kaya lang medyo bastos kapag sinabi ng mga kano na cool ka. “Abdul-the-cool”! Hehehe!

5. Al Fakher – ito naman pangalan pa lang playboy na playboy ang dating mo! Kapag tinawag ka mag-reply ka agad ng “Al Fak yhuu too!” hehehe!

6. Al Manure – Kung pipili ka paki-huli na lamang ito kasi parang amoy kasilyas ang dating. Wala lang, nabasa ko kasi ito sa may restaurant malapit sa Central Market.

Yan na lang muna, kasi nakalimutan ko ang iba. Ihahabol ko na lang kapag naalala ko. Pero kahit ano pa ang ipalit mo sa pangalan mo, you will still be Ed to me.


From your future chicken shit cleaner,

Kumander Robot

Dr. Jose Reyes Memorial Medical Center, Christmas of 1995. The best pa rin ang Group 5! Most of the interns wanted to be in our group kasi daw super cool! Calling all members of Group 5 please email me.

Ito yung gusto ko sana i-post. Sige nga find nemo!

FINDING NEMO part deux!

Ok ladies and gentlemen! Final na po! I am experiencing a series of unfortunate events. Guess what happened at work? I was waiting for our patients to come but nobody came. Nada!! Because nobody is scheduled today. I overlooked the schedule board, tomorrow pala yun! So I went home at around 8:30am. Ok lang. Got loads of things to do. But before I enter the car there was another surprise inside my bag. I got 3 set of keys inside, car key's, Lany's house key's and my set of house key's (that I thought I forgot)! This just means that I locked my wife in the bedroom. And if I stayed at work, I would have came home to a starved, ragging mad pregnant woman at home. ;P

Could I just be experiencing an early stage of Alzheimers?

FINDING NEMO

I was trying to upload a new photo last night about finding nemo but I couln't get signed in. I thought that there was something wrong with the website or something... Today, when I got to my locker I found out that I brought with me a different set of house keys (kay honey ko pala yun). Good thing I have a pair of green scrubs lying on top of my locker. Coincidence? I'm still waiting for the next unfortunate event to unfold. So what do you think will happen next? The theme is about "Locks". (cue Jeopardy theme song)

OOPSS I DID IT AGAIN!

Kagabi habang nakatambay sa bahay ng tropa, may nadiskubre ako ng pagkakamali ko sa blogsite na ito. Medyo nakakatawa ng nakakahiya na madyo nakakatakot. Bakit? E kasi nadiskubre ko na hindi lang ang mga malapit kong kaibigan ang nagbabasa nito, pati mga ibang lahi sa hospital ay nagbabasa rin! Minsan pa naman ay may mga patama ako sa namumuno sa amin sa wikang Ingles! (nyehh!) Di lang yun! Nakadisplay pa ang mga mukha namin. (nyehhhhh!!!!) Kung ano man yung mga sinabi ko, yun ay pawing totoo at hindi ko na mababawi. Ang problema lang ay kung may gagamit nun para isuplong ako sa mga kafuckyarihan.

So kung nababasa nila ang mga entry ko, malamang babasahin din nila ang mga blog na nakalink sa blog ko! Hayup! Kaya heto ako nagsusulat sa salitang Tagalog para hindi maintindihan ng mga kups.

Yuki! Nagduty ka ba kagabi? Natulog na kami pagkauwi. Pagod na rin kami. Sama kayo mamaya kung puede, magagala kami.

PUFF THE MAGIC DRAGON

This is one of my favorite song when I was a child. Being raised by two uncles who were in a folk rock band, I can't help but be influenced by their music. Puff is my favorite dragon next to Bruce Lee and Mushu (little dragon from Mulan).

Yesterday as I watched the news, they said that America is threatened by the booming Chinese economy. Each year a big percentage of Americans lose their jobs over the issue of "outsourcing". One of the problems could be that Americans tend to pick white collar jobs, and leave the blue collar jobs to immigrants, illegal aliens, aliens from outer space (Tulad ng sa palabas na Roswell), and to third world countries such as China, India and the Philippines.

If this is the case, our country could do more damage to the US if the political bullshit can be avoided. China has benefited a lot from multi-national companies, and local entrepreneurs as well. Could this factor be influenced by the Chinese diet of noodles? If this is true, then the Philippines could be the next emerging dragon of Asia! Because instant noodles is the only food that the common-tao can afford with their extremely low wages. (optimism ba to?)

But what is really installed for us in the coming years, if TV has pre-occupied us with telenovela's? if our fallen heroes "the Japayuki's" are now unemployed? if the political scene continues pull the economy down? if the nurse's leave our sick behind for greener pastures? if we keep electing substandard politicians? Our Asian neighbors had left us by a thousand miles towards progess. And in 10 years if the situation is still the same, the only kind of people that will be left behind is the poorest of the poor, some would migrate to another country. And those who can afford to pay for a change of citizenship will only have memories of the old Pinas.

"A dragon lives forever,
but not so little boys
painted wings and giant's rings
make way for other toys.

One grey night it happened
Jackie Paper came no more
and Puff that Mighty Dragon,
he ceased his fearless roar.

His head was bent in sorrow,
green scales fell like rain,
Puff no longer went to play
along the cherry lane.

Without his life-long friend,
Puff could not be brave
so Puff that Mighty Dragon
sadly slipped into his cave."

posted by Dennis "por all op our kabayan prends"

REAL GENIUS

If there is one movie that made me what I am today, it would be "Real Genius". It stars Val Kilmer as the handsome, cocky, smart ass genius, who discovered that being an academic is not everything. He can be found transforming the school dorm into a skating rink, and doing unthinkable things like using liquid nitrogen sliced into pennies to be used to outsmarting vending machines. During the betamax era, kids like me would kill to be Val Kilmer! The 80's has transformed nerds into glorified geeks.

But who doesn't want to be smart? Our parents raised us with a piece of bamboo stick on their hand that bruised out butts to force us to become Einsteines. But if being a genius means being like Val Kilmer then by all means! Give me that lab coat, slick my hair with gel and give me a pair of ray ban shades. Because the future's so bright, I got to wear shades!

So here I am 20 years from now, wearing a lab coat, semi-kalbo head and still wearing my Killer Loop shades. I'm living my fantasy turned reality...atleast the shades part worked, except I'm not a genius. Just a guy in a lab coat wearing shades.

Watch the long awaited movie of the decade! Once Upon A Time In Japang! A story you will never forget, or shouldnt forget...or else.

SOUTH BITCH DIET ver. 1.2

Yesterday we headed to the biggest mall in Bahrain to window shop. One of the shops that we eagerly wanted to visit is the Al Hilal Bookshop. This is probably the most up to date bookshop on this island. At the self help section my wife handed me a book and told me "this is for you". To my surprise she gave me a Dr. Phil diet book followed by The South Beach Diet. And then an idea came in. ting! Why not blog about the "Navotas Beach Diet!"

When I was a young lad of about 3 years, I can remember my father and my grandparents bringing me to the beach every morning near their house for a shower of vitamin D. They would always take me to the jetty (pantalan) because it is the cleanest part of the beach. The entire strip sand is covered with garbage. Tons of it! But thats another story. Here is my diet when I'm at home.

NAVOTAS BEACH DIET

1. Patis

Patis is synonymous with our small town. It is a part of every meal. In fact, some of us cannot eat without it. An average Navoteno household may consume a bottle of patis in a month or more. No meal is ever complete without it.






2. Bagoong Alamang


Another staple food of a Navoteno. No one cooks the best shrimp paste in the world but my parents! They somehow make it not too salty and a little bit sweet. You can eat it with rice because they put a lot of pork in it. Everytime I go back abroad my dad prepares 3 cans of this good stuff. Most of the time I end up with just one, because I give some of it away to my anxious friends.

3. Tinapa, Tuyo at Daing

The simplest of food can turn the rice cooker upside down. Especially when my mama prepares her special garlic rice! It never fails to boil my gastric juice to a heaping lava! Mama uses used oil to cook her rice, it puts a lot of flavor in it. Kasi used oil nga e! Don't use car oil. Vegetable oil will do.




4. Squid

My visit to my parents house is not complete without my fathers pusit recipe. He will cook it any way he wants and it will always taste good because it is fresh! I like it adobo(the darker the sauce the fresher and tastier it gets) , relleno (stuffed) or just plain grilled. I don't know why but it always taste good with overnight rice (bahaw/kanin lamig). One time I tried it with with pandesal (dinner rolls) and it still taste good.



5. Fish balls

My afternoon is not complete without my favorite merienda. This is also a bahaw kanin meal. Often sold my Mr. Johnny Bola (because he barks it that way. "bolaaaa!") in the afternoon about 5pm. I don't buy it in sticks. I get a bowl and Johnny fills it up with vinegar, soy sauce and chilli combo sauce. I spent about P.10-20.oo on this and about half a kalero of cold rice. => Sarap! Happy balls talaga!


6. Jollibee
I love everything in Jollibee! Because it truly has the Filipino taste. The first time I tasted this is when I was a kid when we went to watch Superman in Cubao. We bought it in the first Jollibug in Pinas. And I got to tell you, this bug isn't that big before. Now his ass is bigger that its head! Eventhough there was a scare that the burger patties were not made from 100% beef, because it came from cultured worms, we still shoved those glorious tasting burgers in our mouths. But its sad to say that the old recipe is not the same anymore. It tastes different now. Or perhaps my taste buds aren't the same as it used to be. I love you Jollibug!

7. Galunggong
Our household, especially during the times when my father use to earn his living as a fisherman, we always have fish on our table. One of the best thing you can do to a fresh fried fish (FFF di ba parang 666 yun?) is to eat it with pandesal. A habbit that I learned from my Tito Cito (the youngest sibling of my mother, and by far the coolest tito in the family.) He said its like being in the days where Jesus fed his followers with fish and bread. Try it and tell me how it is.

8. Talangka
Sorry I can't find the pic of my favorite crab. I already found them like this, bottled and prepared. After the rainy season there used to be a guy selling Talangka in our neighborhood. Usually carried in nets balanced on a flat bamboo pole on a mans shoulders, be would call out to the neighbors to sell his crabs (ay kadiri! lets use talangka ulit. pangit ng crabs parang kuto so bulbo....reminder! PG 18 tong blog ko mg chong ha!) Mom would buy a small basin full of those creepy crawlers, wash them in fresh water, put salt in them to cook, and them after an hour voila! Dead crablets ready to eat! You open the shell first, and then you sqeeze the hell out off the crabs until you get all the orange colored things on your rice. Some put kalamansi on it, but I prefer it plain. Squished out crabs! Yummy!

9. Kapeng Barako
Translation: Kape = Coffee, Barako = Male/Macho/bull/musculine
Macho Coffee, as some may call it, is one of the most strongest coffee in pinas. If you make espresso out of it, you better be ready for a kidney transplant. Its like a horse kicked you in the head! gosh!

When I was a kid an uncle of mine called me "palos". Palos is a quick slippery fish, an alias for a slippery criminal or something like that. Now dont know why they would call me like that, but then during my adult life I remembered my Tita Daisy (my moms cousin) feeding me pandesal and kapeng barako every morning. Then I said "thats it!" This is the reason why I'm so active when I was a toddler. Now I know what I shouldn't feed baby Diego.

10. Pula, Stainless and the Saint




Pula = Emperador Brandy







Stainless = Ginebra San Miguel







The Saint = San Miguel Beer





Usually, my friends and I have a night cap, every night! Then I was rehabilitated here in Bahrain for 4 years. We have all sorts of alcoholic drinks here, but nothing compares to these 3. In my town, you should know how to drink stainless or else you will get beaten up by the mob. Thats why my father recommends gargling gin in the morning! Hehehehe! Joke!

PAHABOL:

11. Tahong


Lastly, the all time favorite pulutan tahong! This is a seasonal delicacy. Some men have been inspired to compare this shell fish to a woman. hmmm... Maybe because of the seasonal harvest, they both have red tide! hehehehe! But beside the fact that it looks like the female genetalia (uy! scientific ang dating ha!), I never heard of a Navoteno that died of red tide. Lucky sons of the beach! (kasi laki sa tabing dagat)

That ends our lecture about the special diet of the Sons of the Beach. I would like to congratulate everyone from my home town for its 100th year this coming January 2006. Thanks for the info Commander Mang Carling Bernardo, retired US navy. I hope you enjoy your vacation next year!

After counting the 10 things I like in Pinas, I might say that I am a bit relieved of my headache. Like Julie Andrews said in her song "my favorite things": I simply remember my favorite things and then I won't feel so sad. Its true pala. Because we had an accident last night. Tita Cory slammed on a concrete fence, denting the rear bumper. Hayyyyy!!! Im just glad that my family is ok.

What to do yani?!

posted by the "KING OF BEER" Dennis na taga-Navotas