The Problem With Time

And so, it begins.

It is the first of whatever first you're about to experience. You give yourself an excuse that this would be your last. And then, the following day, you don't anticipate the traffic. Hence, you arrive at your destination later than planned. You tell yourself this would be the last.

You are given an ample amount of time to work on something important. You put it off until the last minute. You pray to the high heavens that whoever gave that project to you would still accept it. Keep thinking of positive thoughts.

But at the end of it all, really.

You think you have time.

But. You. Don't.

Do it at the right time. Do it before time runs out.

Because you think you have time. But you don't.

A follow-up on 3-in-1s

It's better to make a separate post for this since this is more food related than it is life changing.

You know all those 3-in-1 cofee mixes you buy at groceries and supermarkets, well guess what. None of them are good substitutes for the real deal. None of them will wake you up and help you get going while you cram on your thesis. Most of them taste more of the sugar and creamer or even milk than coffee. I've tasted 3-in-1 coffee mixes from Cafe Rite, Nescafe, Blend 45 and Kopiko, but none of them helped me stay up to do a typing marathon. I have never felt any jolt of energy or an experience of being re-energized after consuming 3-4 sachets everyday.

Sometimes, I wonder if it really is coffee that I'm drinking because it just tastes like dessert. I guess, maybe in that department it would work. If they claimed that, "This 3-in-1 mix will help you end your meal on a sweet note", or something to that effect.

Plus, I can't imagine the amount of sugar content found in these 3-in-1 coffee mixes. It's as if half of the mix was made up of sugar!

Fine, maybe I really don't have the right to complain since, first, nothing is over P10.00 per sachet, second, it does take time to prepare a good cup and lastly it is readily available. But, for a country that boasts of having one of the best coffee in the world, I'd like to believe that we can also produce good 3-in-1 coffee mixes.

Oh, well. At least I still have my coffee press to cling on to. It may not produce the same brewed rich taste from the local Starbucks but at least I know that what goes into my esophagus is the real deal.

Of Shortcuts and 3-in-1s

There are no shortcuts to good things. No 3-in-1s to wake you up or keep you up. If you want good results, if you want something to get done, it will and will always take some of your time. May it be, mixing that great cup of coffee to keep you up while cramming on your thesis. Or hoping that you'd finish your thesis in just 3 days or less is something that only a miracle could make possible.

There are no shortcuts to life. There are no 3-in-1s to keep you up all day and night.

Everything takes time, but once done, you will realise that it was just a fleeting moment. So, why not make the most out of it? Make the most out of it so you'll get the best out of your time.

Sorry, like you've said you did screw things up. I hope you get to read this so you'll know that you should stop calling and texting me. This is what you wanted, so you have to live with it.

And yes, magulo tayo ngayon. Don't wonder anymore.

Blueberries? For real?

I'm beginning to feel like I have to create another blog just for my culinary adventures. But then again, the title of my blog is a bit vague so I'll park that thought for the meantime.

My friend and I came from Baguio a few weeks ago. It was a crazy trip as it only lasted for 24 hours. Needless to say, our bodies, specifically our bums, were sore due to the almost 14 hours bus ride to and from Baguio. I will not recommend this kind of adventure to anyone except for those seeking a different kind of pain and exhaustion. I will leave the story of that self inflicted ordeal for a later post.

I am not sure if my brain shrunk little by little due to the exhaustion which started as soon as we arrived in Baguio, but I didn't think twice about buying those so called, "blueberries." They were labelled "Sweet Organic Blueberries" and regretting the experience of tasting fresh strawberries during winter time in Hong Kong haunted me so I was more than happy to purchase P50.00 worth of blueberries, which contained more than 1/4 cup. Forgetting how they looked like and that part of the Baguio wet market wasn't sufficiently lit up, it didn't even cross my mind to confirm with the vendor whether they were the real thing or not.

As if my lack of experience with blueberries wasn't enough, I did not bake them immediately and left them in the fridge for about a week. But they still looked like from the day I bought them so I proceeded to making them into a cupcake. As you've figured they didn't taste yummy. Even the cake itself didn't taste good. Or maybe the taste of the blueberries had to compliment the cake so that they'll be yummy to the bite. Anyway, going back to the blueberries, since they were packaged in a styro foam container covered with cling wrap, you really can't see if they still have that dusted with powder sheen to them. But if you look at the pictures of blueberries on the internet, if they're still or fresh, or just good to be consumed, they will have that look to them, just like grapes. Which is how one should choose fresh or good grapes. Or maybe one of the factors you should use as a guide in buying blueberries.

They most certainly didn't look like those even on the day I bought them.

Photo borrowed from http://photoblog.tonyherman.com/2012/03/05/surprisingly-good-blueberries/

A blueberry article you might like: http://www.wikihow.com/Pick-Blueberries


As of writing, I have done a quick research and there is more to it than just having that dusted with powder look so it really is best to research when you want to make the best choice. Another lesson I've learned is, it is really important to use locally grown fruits, or those that can be found naturally in your region or maybe even country. We don't have blueberries here in the Philippines and my lack of experience clearly shows that. But it was still worth the experience and I've come to appreciate what Mother Earth has to offer on this side of the planet.

Mangoes here are the best though, especially those that come from the island of Guimaras. Crossing my fingers I could get some and bake them into yummy cupcakes!

Too much of something...

I am not sure if I had too much of one thing or if it's a common thing among the ones that I have tasted. My ideal cupcake would be something that's moist yet light. It should be flavorful but not too sweet and buttery or both. Unfortunately, most of the cupcakes I tasted today didn't have the texture I want. A lot of them were too moist that I thought I was eating a fudge brownie. I forgot to mention that I tasted mostly red velvet cupcakes because I'm still looking for the one that will be second best to Sonja's red velvet delights. Even the red velvet cupcake that's been making a buzz lately disappointed me a bit. The taste was there but it wasn't the red velvet cupcake I was looking for.

I guess, everybody has his or her own cupcake, to be specific, red velvet cupcake, so it's up to the consumer as to which one he or she will like. Maybe I should have tried a different cupcake flavor to taste test, like a vanilla cupcake, but I thought it might be too plain tasting and not worth the trouble I had to go through just to get to that event.

And, I forgot to mention the price, a lot of them for me were a bit overpriced.

Anyway, I guess the search goes on, or maybe I should stop taste testing other cupcakes.

Maybe, if I was just there to enjoy each cupcake, they'd all be yummy in their own way.

After months of waiting, I got my Inspiration!

I do not understand why it took months for this shade of eyeshadow from Ellana Minerals took months to be restocked. I have been tempted plenty of times to order directly from their online store but it was a waste, for me, to buy one small tiny thing and pay for shipping. So, I waited, and waited, finally, last Sunday, the Ellana Minerals stall in SM Makati had it on stock. 

I will do a proper review of course, I have to give justice to the long waiting period I had to endure just to get my hands on this eyeshadow. But in a nutshell, its one of those eye shadows that everyone must have. 

Ciao for now! :)