Cake Nazis
Has anyone seen that episode of Seinfeld with the soup nazis? Ok maybe I'm exaggerrating just a tad, but if you've ever been to the famous OH-MY-GOD-YOU-LIVE-IN-GLENDALE-DO-YOU-GO-TO-THAT-CUBAN-BAKERY Porto's, you'd know exactly what I'm talking about.
There is a bakery on Brand Blvd here in Glendale that started out as this modest little family-owned business (go to www.portosbakery.com for more details). Seriously, the place was the size of my room! Then they kept having to expand cuz EVERYBODY AND THEIR DOG WANTED SOME DAMN CHEESEROLLS! Please don't get me wrong because I think it's an awesome bakery! When you taste the light and sweet cheeserolls, or the delectible triple chocolate mousse cake topped with ruffles of white chocolate, or the tasty fruit tart that no one can seem to get tired of, or my new discovery, the tres leches cake whose bottom is drenched in condensed milk, I suppose you'd brave the long wait just to order. Yes, there are that many different pastries you will definitely not taste at any other bakery. But it's the fanatacism of it that scares me.
It's insane here THE WHOLE TIME it's open. And people from all over the nation know about this place! You know, my parents handcarried 100 cheeserolls to our family reunion in Chicago at the request of my aunts and uncles? IT'S CRAZY! On saturday afternoon I pulled out a number from one of those number machine thingies at the bakery: #419. The ticker on the wall said: "Now serving 330!" THERE WERE 89 PEOPLE AHEAD OF ME! So I stood there, getting bumped into and pushed aside and ALL I WANTED WERE 3 DOZEN CHEESEROLLS...and joe's freakin' guava cheese roll (styupid!).
Leia is always asking me, "When are you gonna take me to that Cuban bakery?" and I would love to take her there one day, but as fate would have it, we never have the time to pass by when she's at my house. It's not like you can just go in and be out in 15 minutes. With Porto's that's unheard of, unless you're planning to make a run for the kitchen, stuff your face then head for the backdoor.
Uy ve, talk about taking advantage of the sweet tooth...
Tuesday, January 20, 2004
Monday, January 19, 2004
Getting to know...
RANDY MENDOZA aka RRRRANDY
Vitals: Met when we were in kindergarten. He was in the morning class and I was in the afternoon class = 20 years and counting
Role in my Life: The One Who’ll Never Go Away (at least I hope not) – Randy has been there for me since forever, the first guy I ever really considered a close friend. He was the one in the 5th grade who kinda rolled his eyes when I was being pathetic about some boy who didn’t like me back. But he’s the very same friend who’ll sit there and listen to me cry about it. Seldom getting the opportunity to talk or hang out for 4 years of high school, Randy and I are always able to pick up where we left off.
Good Times: Where to begin…When we were in the 7th grade, Randy and I decided to run for student council president. At the time, the candidate with the most votes would be president and the runner-up would be vice president. Randy had told me before we started campaigning that he wanted to be VP, so he passed out flyers that said “RANDY MENDOZA for PRESIDENT” while telling each student, “Hey vote for Anna okay.”
In his own words: “I like to eat.”
RANDY MENDOZA aka RRRRANDY
Vitals: Met when we were in kindergarten. He was in the morning class and I was in the afternoon class = 20 years and counting
Role in my Life: The One Who’ll Never Go Away (at least I hope not) – Randy has been there for me since forever, the first guy I ever really considered a close friend. He was the one in the 5th grade who kinda rolled his eyes when I was being pathetic about some boy who didn’t like me back. But he’s the very same friend who’ll sit there and listen to me cry about it. Seldom getting the opportunity to talk or hang out for 4 years of high school, Randy and I are always able to pick up where we left off.
Good Times: Where to begin…When we were in the 7th grade, Randy and I decided to run for student council president. At the time, the candidate with the most votes would be president and the runner-up would be vice president. Randy had told me before we started campaigning that he wanted to be VP, so he passed out flyers that said “RANDY MENDOZA for PRESIDENT” while telling each student, “Hey vote for Anna okay.”
In his own words: “I like to eat.”
Sunday, January 18, 2004
The King Has Returned! (Did he ever!)
This past friday night I watched THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RETURN OF THE KING for the THIRD time since it's release. Well, I saw the FELLOWSHIP once, and the TWO TOWERS twice, so I only saw it fit to see RETURN OF THE KING three times!...yup, there's no logic in that whatsoever, but I couldn't help it. No but serously, my main purpose on friday WAS to accompany those (Iya, Joe and Randy) who had not the pleasure of viewing the excellent film yet. I loved how Iya would tap me every other scene if she had a question! One time during the movie we moved in at the same time and bumped heads! But I digress...
The first time I saw FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING, I thought it was a scary movie. I jumped a couple times during the film (when Bilbo's face turns monstrous when he asks Frodo to give him the ring at Rivendell and when Galadriel becomes this creepy, evil ghost lady when the fellowship was in Lorien). But then I saw it a second time in the comfort of my own living room and I was suddenly inspired (not only by Orlando Bloom), but by the story itself. By the time THE TWO TOWERS had been released, I had become a fan. I read all three books (save for the HOBBIT, which is my next venture) and waited anxiously for the third installment of Tolkien's masterpiece.
So I've sat in the theater for 3 hours and 21 minutes (THREE TIMES) for RETURN OF THE KING and each time I was nothing short of enthralled at this epic on the big screen before me. The film is so powerful, with its battle scenes, and at times so heartwrenching that you forget it's a fantasy (or is it?). Even though I had read the books and I knew what scenes were to follow, I was scared for Frodo & Sam with that evil and conniving Gollum hanging on them; I was proud of Pippin and Merry, who although had thought they were too little to fight for themselves, much less all of Middle Earth, showed themselves to be worth of the greatest honor one can bestow on such courageous beings; I saw the fear and doubt in Gandalf, who everyone depends on for guidance; I was anxious for Aragorn to apply that courage and fearlessness to the regal future before him and rescue his beloved Arwen from a deadly fate she chose in order to be with him; I marveled at Gimli and Legolas, who through their devotion to the Aragorn and the fellowship, managed to thwart their disdain in order to form a friendship between the unlikeliest of peoples in Middle Earth; I saw Faramir & Eowyn, who (I might be killing this for someone who hasn't read the book) I couldn't be happier, formed a most perfect union symbolizing the bond between Rohan and Gondor.
Am I reading too into it? Maybe. Kinda proves the kind of genius J.R.R. Tolkien was though, doesn't it, to move his readers in the way that he has. And the genius of Peter Jackson and his team to aid our visual needs. I can't wait for the dvd...and moreover...THE EXTENDED VERSION! I predict THAT's gonna be at least 4 1/2 hours long at the very least...with this I say BRING ON THE POPCORN!
This past friday night I watched THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RETURN OF THE KING for the THIRD time since it's release. Well, I saw the FELLOWSHIP once, and the TWO TOWERS twice, so I only saw it fit to see RETURN OF THE KING three times!...yup, there's no logic in that whatsoever, but I couldn't help it. No but serously, my main purpose on friday WAS to accompany those (Iya, Joe and Randy) who had not the pleasure of viewing the excellent film yet. I loved how Iya would tap me every other scene if she had a question! One time during the movie we moved in at the same time and bumped heads! But I digress...
The first time I saw FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING, I thought it was a scary movie. I jumped a couple times during the film (when Bilbo's face turns monstrous when he asks Frodo to give him the ring at Rivendell and when Galadriel becomes this creepy, evil ghost lady when the fellowship was in Lorien). But then I saw it a second time in the comfort of my own living room and I was suddenly inspired (not only by Orlando Bloom), but by the story itself. By the time THE TWO TOWERS had been released, I had become a fan. I read all three books (save for the HOBBIT, which is my next venture) and waited anxiously for the third installment of Tolkien's masterpiece.
So I've sat in the theater for 3 hours and 21 minutes (THREE TIMES) for RETURN OF THE KING and each time I was nothing short of enthralled at this epic on the big screen before me. The film is so powerful, with its battle scenes, and at times so heartwrenching that you forget it's a fantasy (or is it?). Even though I had read the books and I knew what scenes were to follow, I was scared for Frodo & Sam with that evil and conniving Gollum hanging on them; I was proud of Pippin and Merry, who although had thought they were too little to fight for themselves, much less all of Middle Earth, showed themselves to be worth of the greatest honor one can bestow on such courageous beings; I saw the fear and doubt in Gandalf, who everyone depends on for guidance; I was anxious for Aragorn to apply that courage and fearlessness to the regal future before him and rescue his beloved Arwen from a deadly fate she chose in order to be with him; I marveled at Gimli and Legolas, who through their devotion to the Aragorn and the fellowship, managed to thwart their disdain in order to form a friendship between the unlikeliest of peoples in Middle Earth; I saw Faramir & Eowyn, who (I might be killing this for someone who hasn't read the book) I couldn't be happier, formed a most perfect union symbolizing the bond between Rohan and Gondor.
Am I reading too into it? Maybe. Kinda proves the kind of genius J.R.R. Tolkien was though, doesn't it, to move his readers in the way that he has. And the genius of Peter Jackson and his team to aid our visual needs. I can't wait for the dvd...and moreover...THE EXTENDED VERSION! I predict THAT's gonna be at least 4 1/2 hours long at the very least...with this I say BRING ON THE POPCORN!
Friday, January 16, 2004
SCAREDY CAT
Has anyone watched THE RING? Well, if any of you know me, you’re well-aware that I don’t fare well when it comes to scary movies. I’m downright terrified of it all. It’s because I have such an active imagination! Anyhow, so this movie came out last year and everyone was trying to get me to watch. “HELL NO, YEAH RIGHT” was always my answer, I just couldn’t do it! Well, HBO was showing THE RING all weekend last week and I said to myself, “Suck it up Anna it’s just a movie.” So I ATTEMPTED to watch it Sunday morning…TOO BAD I CHANGE THE CHANNEL WHEN IT STARTS TO GET TOO SCARY FOR ME! I continued to force myself to watch the damn thing at least 3-4 more times that day and I got as far as when she fell in the hole (am I killing this for some people? I’m probably the only one who hasn’t finished watching it!), when she lifted up her arm from the water and their was all this hair on it, I screamed and ran to the kitchen.
I called my cousin that night and had her fill in all the holes since I changed the channel like 10 times! And hmm, maybe now that I know what happens, I can sit and watch it for real…NEGATIVE!
Has anyone watched THE RING? Well, if any of you know me, you’re well-aware that I don’t fare well when it comes to scary movies. I’m downright terrified of it all. It’s because I have such an active imagination! Anyhow, so this movie came out last year and everyone was trying to get me to watch. “HELL NO, YEAH RIGHT” was always my answer, I just couldn’t do it! Well, HBO was showing THE RING all weekend last week and I said to myself, “Suck it up Anna it’s just a movie.” So I ATTEMPTED to watch it Sunday morning…TOO BAD I CHANGE THE CHANNEL WHEN IT STARTS TO GET TOO SCARY FOR ME! I continued to force myself to watch the damn thing at least 3-4 more times that day and I got as far as when she fell in the hole (am I killing this for some people? I’m probably the only one who hasn’t finished watching it!), when she lifted up her arm from the water and their was all this hair on it, I screamed and ran to the kitchen.
I called my cousin that night and had her fill in all the holes since I changed the channel like 10 times! And hmm, maybe now that I know what happens, I can sit and watch it for real…NEGATIVE!
Wednesday, January 14, 2004
A Day to Give Thanks
I forgot to greet someone yesterday, January 13...BELATED HAPPY 27TH BIRTHDAY ORLANDO BLOOM!! How can we thank your lovely parents for bearing such a gift from God?
Man, I all greet Orlando but missed some special other birthdays so I'll catch up now:
December 21 - Happy 26th Bday Eric!
December 27 - Happy 20th Bday Chris & Dave! (My cousins)
December 28 - Happy Bday Tito Dannie!
December 29 - Happy 4th Bday Hayden!
January 2 - Happy 25th Bday Leia!
January 6 - Happy 50th Ninang!
January 10 - Happy 26th Bday Cahlo!
There you go! Anyone else I missed? I'll catch you next time!
I forgot to greet someone yesterday, January 13...BELATED HAPPY 27TH BIRTHDAY ORLANDO BLOOM!! How can we thank your lovely parents for bearing such a gift from God?
Man, I all greet Orlando but missed some special other birthdays so I'll catch up now:
December 21 - Happy 26th Bday Eric!
December 27 - Happy 20th Bday Chris & Dave! (My cousins)
December 28 - Happy Bday Tito Dannie!
December 29 - Happy 4th Bday Hayden!
January 2 - Happy 25th Bday Leia!
January 6 - Happy 50th Ninang!
January 10 - Happy 26th Bday Cahlo!
There you go! Anyone else I missed? I'll catch you next time!
Monday, January 12, 2004
Getting to know...
MATTHEW B. MINDANAO aka MATT or ACHUBOY
Vitals: Matt was my first friend when I moved here from the Philippines in 1982 but of course we’ve been cousins since birth = 25 years and counting
Role in my life: Brother I Never Had – Matt and I are the same age (we were born 6 months apart), we started school together, we used to fight over stupid toys when we were little, we keep each other company at family parties, etc. We don’t ever get mushy about it, but there hasn’t been much that’s happened in my life that Matt hasn’t witnessed and I am damn grateful for him.
Good Times: Too many to tell cuz we grew up together! But here are some highlights: When we were about 5 or 6 years old, we were singing along to one of Matt’s Disney sing-a-long tapes and he decides to stick a marshmallow up his nose!…and of course it gets stuck. He cries cuz he can’t seem to blow it out until his mom comes to the rescue. A week later, he gets a piece of rolled up paper stuck up his nose!…Around the same age, Matt and I were playing hide-n-seek and I hid in a closet that doesn’t open from the inside. When I realized this, I was crying “Matt open the door!!” and he was standing there in front of the closet yelling, “Leng come out!!!” and we went back and forth like this until my dad finally came to my aid.
In his own words: “Please man! Get this dog off me! Please! Edwin, Carlo, Dino! Get this dog off me! C’mon, it’s gonna give me nightmares!” (Matt hallucinating after too many beers)
MATTHEW B. MINDANAO aka MATT or ACHUBOY
Vitals: Matt was my first friend when I moved here from the Philippines in 1982 but of course we’ve been cousins since birth = 25 years and counting
Role in my life: Brother I Never Had – Matt and I are the same age (we were born 6 months apart), we started school together, we used to fight over stupid toys when we were little, we keep each other company at family parties, etc. We don’t ever get mushy about it, but there hasn’t been much that’s happened in my life that Matt hasn’t witnessed and I am damn grateful for him.
Good Times: Too many to tell cuz we grew up together! But here are some highlights: When we were about 5 or 6 years old, we were singing along to one of Matt’s Disney sing-a-long tapes and he decides to stick a marshmallow up his nose!…and of course it gets stuck. He cries cuz he can’t seem to blow it out until his mom comes to the rescue. A week later, he gets a piece of rolled up paper stuck up his nose!…Around the same age, Matt and I were playing hide-n-seek and I hid in a closet that doesn’t open from the inside. When I realized this, I was crying “Matt open the door!!” and he was standing there in front of the closet yelling, “Leng come out!!!” and we went back and forth like this until my dad finally came to my aid.
In his own words: “Please man! Get this dog off me! Please! Edwin, Carlo, Dino! Get this dog off me! C’mon, it’s gonna give me nightmares!” (Matt hallucinating after too many beers)
Wednesday, January 07, 2004
Killing Me Softly
There’s a song that Kelly Clarkson sings on the Love Actually soundtrack (that’s also in her album) that I adore because I think everything about it is so true. See for youself:
The Trouble With Love Is…
Love can be a many splendor thing
Can’t deny the joy it brings
A dozen roses, diamond rings
Dreams for sale and fairy tales
It’ll make you hear a symphony
And you just want the world to see
But like a drug that makes you blind
It’ll fool you every time
The trouble with love is
It can tear you up inside
Make your heart believe a lie
It’s stronger than your pride
The trouble with love is
It doesn’t care how fast you fall
And you can’t refuse the call
See you got no say at all
Now I was once a fool it’s true
I played the game by all the rules
But now my world’s a deeper blue
I’m sadder but I’m wiser too
I swore I’d never love again
Swore my heart would never mend
Said love wasn’t worth the pain
But then I hear it call my name
Every time I turn around
I think I’ve got it all figured out
My heart keeps callin’
And I keep on fallin’
Over and over again
Yes that story always ends the same
Me, standin’ in the pourin’ rain
Seems no matter what I do
It tears my heart in two
Again, I am no expert when it comes to relationships seeing as to how I’ve never been in one (falling-in-love type of unions anyhow). But the few times I “experienced” romantic feelings, they’ve ended up emotionally disastrous…for ME. Maybe because I bottled up the emotions, fearing the worst should the boy find out how I felt. I've also tried revealing such feelings since hiding it didn't help the last time. I took one of Iya's favorite quotes to heart in forming this decision. It goes, "What's worse, saying something and wishing you hadn't or saying nothing and wishing you had?" So I said something, but of course the end result sucked as badly as the one before when I kept my mouth shut. One of those damned if you do, damned if you don’t kind of things, that love. And then another time, I actually thought I had CONTROL over my feelings, that I could contain them if I so chose to (I'm a control freak). But of course, I couldn't contain the feelings effectively and I imploded every once in a while because there was no other outlet for the grief. Eventually the feelings wore itself out, but it took a long while.
Unrequitted love is one of the worst feelings I have ever felt (and I've felt it more than once). I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy. It's a lingering, entrapping feeling. You own this strong emotion for someone (not that you wouldn't gladly give it away). Should you tell them? Would they reject you? Maybe. Could they return the feeling? Who knows. Are you afraid that you'll get the crappy end of the deal? Definitely. When all is said and done (or in most of my cases, nothing said and nothing done), you're still left with this longing that you can't get rid of and this is what seems to hurt you the most. And then the most horrifying thought sets in: How long is this terrible feeling gonna last? They say the love that lasts the longest is the love that is never returned. As a successful alumnus of this experience, I say, AMEN to that!
There’s a song that Kelly Clarkson sings on the Love Actually soundtrack (that’s also in her album) that I adore because I think everything about it is so true. See for youself:
The Trouble With Love Is…
Love can be a many splendor thing
Can’t deny the joy it brings
A dozen roses, diamond rings
Dreams for sale and fairy tales
It’ll make you hear a symphony
And you just want the world to see
But like a drug that makes you blind
It’ll fool you every time
The trouble with love is
It can tear you up inside
Make your heart believe a lie
It’s stronger than your pride
The trouble with love is
It doesn’t care how fast you fall
And you can’t refuse the call
See you got no say at all
Now I was once a fool it’s true
I played the game by all the rules
But now my world’s a deeper blue
I’m sadder but I’m wiser too
I swore I’d never love again
Swore my heart would never mend
Said love wasn’t worth the pain
But then I hear it call my name
Every time I turn around
I think I’ve got it all figured out
My heart keeps callin’
And I keep on fallin’
Over and over again
Yes that story always ends the same
Me, standin’ in the pourin’ rain
Seems no matter what I do
It tears my heart in two
Again, I am no expert when it comes to relationships seeing as to how I’ve never been in one (falling-in-love type of unions anyhow). But the few times I “experienced” romantic feelings, they’ve ended up emotionally disastrous…for ME. Maybe because I bottled up the emotions, fearing the worst should the boy find out how I felt. I've also tried revealing such feelings since hiding it didn't help the last time. I took one of Iya's favorite quotes to heart in forming this decision. It goes, "What's worse, saying something and wishing you hadn't or saying nothing and wishing you had?" So I said something, but of course the end result sucked as badly as the one before when I kept my mouth shut. One of those damned if you do, damned if you don’t kind of things, that love. And then another time, I actually thought I had CONTROL over my feelings, that I could contain them if I so chose to (I'm a control freak). But of course, I couldn't contain the feelings effectively and I imploded every once in a while because there was no other outlet for the grief. Eventually the feelings wore itself out, but it took a long while.
Unrequitted love is one of the worst feelings I have ever felt (and I've felt it more than once). I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy. It's a lingering, entrapping feeling. You own this strong emotion for someone (not that you wouldn't gladly give it away). Should you tell them? Would they reject you? Maybe. Could they return the feeling? Who knows. Are you afraid that you'll get the crappy end of the deal? Definitely. When all is said and done (or in most of my cases, nothing said and nothing done), you're still left with this longing that you can't get rid of and this is what seems to hurt you the most. And then the most horrifying thought sets in: How long is this terrible feeling gonna last? They say the love that lasts the longest is the love that is never returned. As a successful alumnus of this experience, I say, AMEN to that!
Sunday, January 04, 2004
Getting to know...
RIANN GRACE REYES aka MY NUISANCE
Vitals: Riann was a wee little gal when we met. She lived one door away from my grandparents, which is MY house now. My room used to be HER room = about 12 years and counting
Role in my Life: Active Listener - Sometimes when you're divulging your deepest emotions to people, you can tell they're just nodding their heads to appear as though they're listening when they're not. Riann is one of the sincerest listeners I know. Most of the time, she's the one encouraging ME to talk, and it's not because she's bored. It's because she wants to help.
Good Times: Turbo Kickboxing at 24-hour fitness (or any day we decide not be lazy asses and work out) is always a party when I'm with this girl. We know when to encourage each other on the stairclimber and when to say, "more sit-ups?...nah."
In her own words: " Ate Lengy, it's okay to feel."
RIANN GRACE REYES aka MY NUISANCE
Vitals: Riann was a wee little gal when we met. She lived one door away from my grandparents, which is MY house now. My room used to be HER room = about 12 years and counting
Role in my Life: Active Listener - Sometimes when you're divulging your deepest emotions to people, you can tell they're just nodding their heads to appear as though they're listening when they're not. Riann is one of the sincerest listeners I know. Most of the time, she's the one encouraging ME to talk, and it's not because she's bored. It's because she wants to help.
Good Times: Turbo Kickboxing at 24-hour fitness (or any day we decide not be lazy asses and work out) is always a party when I'm with this girl. We know when to encourage each other on the stairclimber and when to say, "more sit-ups?...nah."
In her own words: " Ate Lengy, it's okay to feel."
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