Why? Why Not? Balut Anyone?

My hubby started watching a particular cooking show that features dishes that can be prepared and cooked easy and fast.

One of the recipes that captured his interest is this "balut dish". I've never heard or seen such a dish, but because he was thrilled that he believes he can cook this recipe, he started talking me helping him in his task.


We bought corn oil, garlic, oyster sauce, ginisa mix, spring onions and of course " balut", six of them.

It was fun, for we did everything together . . . buying the ingredients, cooking the dish, plating the dish plus waiting for the kids to go home, taste it and comment on it.

One of my sons ate two pieces of balut, but my other son just looked on and never tried it. My younger son preferred my chicken-pork afritada with carrots, red pepper, mushrooms and baby potatoes.

My eldest son said both dinner dishes were winners!

The Dont's on Having Glowing Skin

Seven (7) Beauty Sins to Avoid

by Sarah Bernard, Host of The Thread
Her blogpost

We all want glowing skin, but the truth is our daily habits often take us further from our goal than we realize. In this episode, dermatologist Dr. Jeannette Graf, points out what we should not be doing, from booking time in tanning beds to staying in sweaty gym clothes post-workout.I consider myself relatively healthy and mindful of my beauty/skin regimen but the truth is, there are small-seeming things we can all do that will have a big effect. Check out Dr. Graf’s list and see which sins you are guilty of:

1 No tanning beds. They age you and triple your risk for melanoma.

2 No lounging in sweaty gym clothes. Exercise is fantastic for the skin as it increases blood flow, but the toxins you just released are sitting on your clothes and clogging your pores.

3 Not exercising.

4 Not using an anti-aging moisturizer till you’re older. Start in your 20s. The number one anti-ager is a cream with SPF, which should be used every day of the year.

5 No going to bed with makeup on. Keep pre-moistened makeup remover cloths by your bed so being tired won’t work as an excuse.

6 Not cleaning your face after flying. Airplanes are full of re-circulated air that’s drying to the skin. Again, the pre-moistened makeup remover cloths can come in handy here.

7 No overindulging on the inside. Drink plenty of water, avoid cola and refined sugar, eat fruits and vegetables and your skin will look so much better as a result.

Keep A Glowing Skin

6 Best Foods for Healthy Skin

By: David Zinczenko

1. SALMON
Salmon is an ideal food for many reasons, but as far as your skin’s concerned, there’s only one that matters: It’s among the world’s greatest sources of omega-3 fatty acids. Those are the essential fats that, along with bolstering the cognitive powers of your brain, concentrate in the walls of your epidermal cells to help lock in moisture. Plus, in one study, researchers supplemented two groups of mice with either omega-3 or omega-6 fats. After two weeks, the skin of the omega-3-fed group exhibited a 20 percent faster recovery rate from exposure to ultraviolet light. That gives salmon two crucial skin boons: keeping your skin from looking dry and helping it battle the dangers of excessive sunlight.

2. CARROTS
Carrots are teeming with tiny orange pigments called beta-carotene, and when you ingest those pigments, you’re inviting them to nestle into your skin, fill in blotches, and give you a healthy glow. And what’s more, research shows that this can actually help prevent premature aging from sun damage. But is the accumulation of orange in your skin going to make you look like an extra from Jersey Shore? Well, hopefully not. But eating excessive loads of carotene-rich foods can lead to a condition called carotenosis, wherein your skin stops looking healthy and starts looking, well, orange. But the conditions is rare, so unless you notice yourself turning into a prison jumpsuit, feel free to chow down.

3. AVOCADO
One study published by The Journal of the American College of Nutrition found that people with higher intakes of olive oil had fewer wrinkles than people with higher intakes of butter. The reason: Butter is loaded with saturated fat, while olive oil is rich in monounsaturates, the same essential fats that make up more than 50% of the calories in an avocado. So why eat avocado over olive oil? Both are good, but avocados have the added bonus of B vitamins, which also help to keep your skin looking vibrant and smooth.

4. BEANS
Legumes, to be more precise. This is the class of plants that includes black beans, chickpeas, lentils, soybeans, and peanuts. And how do these puny pods protect your face? By smoothing out wrinkles. Australian researchers analyzed the diets of more than 400 elderly men and women and found that high intakes of legumes—alongside vegetables and healthy fats—resulted in 20% fewer wrinkles over time. The effect is likely a result of isoflavones—potent antioxidants—concentrated in the beans.

5. GRAPES
Besides providing protection from heart attack and stroke, antioxidants called polyphenols found in grapes can also help keep middle-aged skin from sagging. That’s because polyphenols improve skin’s elasticity by strengthening collagen, the primary protein in skin’s innermost layer.

6. WATER
Okay, it’s not as fun to drink as wine, but water is the strongest weapon you have against lifeless skin. That’s why they call it “moisturizing”—because you’re trying to lock moisture, aka water, into your skin. To put it broadly, all the body’s processes rely on hydration, so if you’re not sipping throughout the day, you’re likely to have a slower metabolism, groggier head, and, yes, drier skin. One study suggested that it takes a mere half-liter of water to create a measurable increase in the capillary blood flow to your body’s outer layer. That’s just over 16 ounces. Try doing that a few times a day and you’ll have a face like a baby’s bottom in no time.

Going for a Younger Look

Excerpts from a very interesting article by Liz Brody, "5 Simple Tricks to Looking Younger":

(1) Skin
Try creams and lotions. Cleanse gently, moisturize daily, swear by SPF 30, and think about an anti-aging cream. Vitamins C and A seem to stand out. In drugstore creams, look for L-ascorbic acid and retinol. At the prescription level, retinoids (like Retin A) have the most science behind them.

(2) Makeup
Try "let there be light" instead of make-up and hide. To hide the bags, dab a light-reflecting cover-up, and don't use powder unless it's loose and finely milled. "If you've never curled your lashes, now is the time to start," says Hollywood makeup artist Kerry Herta . "The compact has to go. Replace it with a liquid foundation." Try a tinted moisturizer. The whole idea is to keep a luminosity to the skin rather than to mattify it. The look of youth is radiance. Brash lipstick can backfire; you'll look younger with soft colors and a little gloss on top".

(3) Hair
Try a touch of shine instead of dyeing darker. Also the cut and a few well-placed highlights can counter facial sagging according to Terrence Michael Renk, a stylist at J Beverly Hills who works in TV and film.

(4) Clothes
It's all about the right pieces."You'll look chic and younger", she says Charla Krupp, author of How Not to Look Old , "in white pants and high heels, or a simple dress". And then"a lot of bangles, a big thick watch, tons of teeny elasticized bracelets." Eyewear can make a big difference, too. Shake up the pedicure. "Put lavender on your toes. Blue, black...grey is really in."

(5) The Body
"You need to continue to train the brain circuits responsible for movement," says Michael Gonzalez-Wallace, creator of the Super Body, Super Brain program. That means, instead of just walking or jogging, which you do automatically, you should periodically throw in a balance or coordination challenge: Walk backward, play basketball, take a ballet class, stand on one foot with your eyes closed. "Try one new activity a week, You just need a few minutes."

Stephanie Dolgoff, author of My Formerly Hot Life says, "Dying your hair or filling in a frown line can definitely give you a little boost. But don't expect looking younger to make you happy.

A smile is an instant face lift.


Source: Liz Brody's blog post

A Good Day to be Happy

Today is another "D Day" for us as a family. . .

That means, it's chemo therapy session day for us. That is how it works. It is really us, as a team undergoing the session, but of course "Wonder Mamu" as the lead. Got to face this with a bit of excitement and thanksgiving as well.

So at 6 am in the morning, little "ate" sister (our youngest sister) called up Mamu to give her happy thoughts as "pabaon" (like a take out or something). Mamu was able to talk to her grandchildren (Julia, Jareth and Zachy) in the US.

Then came the call from my only brother living in New Zealand who also gave a present to Mamu by having his son JP talk to Mamu before she heads to the hospital. This not only made Mamu happy but busy because she had to rush dressing up for we have to go. We had about four big bags to carry. We were like going to a summer outing. We even forgot our pillow. With all the hustle and bustle, her thoughts were off the chemo therapy. Great!

Our relatives both here and abroad have also showed their own personal ways of caring and support. Mamu's community members (of the Lourdes parish church) have also done their prayers and vespers, all for Mamu's health. Thanks to all of them, not to forget our very own friends too.

We started our day early. That way, we don't have to mingle with the traffic, both vehicles and people. A reward is having to choose "our place". I am referring to our "suki" cubicle, the one we always choose.

We went straight to the BCI unit (BCI stands for Bienavides Cancer Institute), with big sister saying good morning to the secretary, the security guard and the nurses, "parang kakandidato" (like a candidate for a government position). That's how she is.

The hospital has new, up-to-date and clean facilities and equipment. Here is the nurses' station in the middle of the room. At the sides are the cubicles, now with pink curtains and golden yellow bed sheets. The last time we visited, they had light yellow curtains and bed sheets.

We were contemplating on trying out the cubicle near the large glass windows so we can look at the big green trees and the vast blue sky, however, the sunlight might smile on us too much, heheh, so we ended up on our usual "fave" spot where it's super cool, besides cubicle 7.

An elderly couple was occupying Cubicle No. 7. The husband was the patient who completed his 6 sessions, however, his doctor recommended a 7th. The wife went to this 7th session with a worried face (most probably a worried mind and heart as well, not to exclude a worried financial situation, since this was what she mentioned to Mamu). She quickly received comforting words from my eldest sister for that's all my sister's powers can do for the woman at the moment.

Mamu, the wonder woman that she is, takes her position on the bed with conviction, taking off her pair of golden "Crocs shoes" . . .

The nurse, in blue not in white, diligently prepared the medicines and the gadgets. Would you believe they were so busy because all the cubicles were occupied. The other room for children patients was also accommodating grown-ups for the day.

My sister and I try to cheer up Mamu as best we can. Mamu was sharing her feelings about the contents of the cards her grandsons Justin and Jeric gave her and some funny stories about Angelica, her granddaughter, who was in school, on a Saturday, for her review. Grandchildren are a blessing (most of the time, viewing it positively). We had a lot of chit-chats and laughs before the session plus some eats.

Mamu had a couple of McDonald's hash brown before the session, some delicious sweet crunchy native "turon" (fried sweet banana) during the session and "lumpiang sariwa" with mouth-watering halo-halo after.

We had her listen to nice music to make her relax. She was asleep the whole time, but I guess it's more of the Benadryl (a medicine that makes one sleepy) more than the music, heheh. Of course not, the pop music helped.

According to Daniel Kahneman, Nobel Prize winner, we have an experiencing self and a memory self.

From what I get, we define happiness based on our memory of the experience rather than the experience itself. This is something new to me and I find it really interesting.

This is the reason why we make an effort to build a positive experience today for Mamu than any other day.

Keep on believing! Chow!