Second Sem Blues...

Semestral break is over. The last few days of the semestral break coincided with a a four-day weekend because of the Philippine All Saint's Day observance on November 1, which fell on a Thursday. Since November 2 is a Friday,  the government thought to make it a no-work holiday too! I woke up at 6:00  this morning. I was feeling lethargic and lazy but I had to wake up as Ethan has school already. I went to the kitchen to check on breakfast and Ethan's lunch pack. Breakfast wasn't ready! There was no packed lunch either! I was ready to explode when my daughter asked me what I was doing up so early.

"It's Ethan's first day of school after a 2-week hiatus!", I quipped. My daughter smiled like a Cheshire cat and told me that school starts on November 7 and not November 5. 

Oh!

The Outer Banks (OBX)

 The Outer Banks is a 320-kilometer strip of  narrow barrier islands located  off the coast of North Carolina and Virginia.  The strip of islands is fondly called the OBX and is definitely a top tourist destination in the U.S.A. The temperate climate in OBX is ideal that the area has its share of  thriving  communities and towns up and down the coastline. I have always taken an interest in the Outer Banks as it was here that the Wright bothers first flight took off. Yup! - the town of Kitty Hawk. It is also the home of  the legendary (almost)  banker ponies. Are there homes for sale in Outer Banks NC? Of course! I wonder how much they cost.

Miss Saigon 2012 Manila Auditions

Cameron Mckintosh's Miss Saigon is set for another run in London's West End in 2013. And guess what? (What?!) Auditions in Manila is from November 19-22, 2012! Hello? Calling all Kims!

Leah Salonga was only 17-years old when she auditioned for the role of Kim for the world premiere of  Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil's Miss Saigon. Leah's singing and acting career started when at the age of  7, she was casted as one of the children in Repertory  Philippine's production of The King and I. Her star shone a little bit brighter when she was chosen as the lead in the local production of the  musical Annie. Her career in the legitimate theater blossomed as she joined other Repertory productions. Leah was "seriously" talented. She recorded her first solo album at the age of 10 but from then on,  she spent the next 7 years doing B movies and TV shows. Her career in the legitimate stage was slowly (but surely) being forgotten.

Leah Salonga at her 1988 Miss Saigon auditions

In 1988, unable to find a London-based talent to play the role of Kim, the producers of Miss Saigon scoured Asia "in search"  of a "Kim". Leah Salonga auditioned for the role, and the rest was history!  

Before Miss Saigon's final curtain call in 1999 (West End) and  2001 (Broadway), there were other Filipinas who played the role of Kim. They were Monique Wilson, Jamie Rivera, Joanna Ampil and Ima Castro. Though these "Kims" were of international caliber, my opinion is that they all paled in comparison with Leah. No one was able to exude the youthful innocence and tragedy of Kim  as well as Leah. Voice-quality wise, Leah Salonga is still the best Kim.

Local contenders for the West End edition of Miss Saigon in 2013 are said to be Rachel Ann Go, Karylle, Angeline Quinto and Denise Laurel.. There are talks that Charice Pempengco and even Jessica Sanchez are being eyed to play Kim. Among these talents, Jessica Sanchez is the only teen at 17 years old. Charice is 20, Denise is 25, Rachel Ann is 26, Angeline is 23 while Karylle is 31!  Jessica has the pipes and the innocence but she does not look Asian and her voice is not really angelic. The rest are just too jaded and experienced to exude the innocence and fierceness of Kim!  Ummm.. I wonder who'll cut it as Kim. Wouldn't it be great if  some unknown stage wannabe makes it as Kim?

Frabelle Hotdogs: Incredibly Delicious!

My kids grew up eating one local hotdog brand which is peputedly said to be the Philippine's number 1 hotdog, I prefer the same hotdog brand and for close to 25 years, it was the only brand of local hotdog I served my family.

I came upon a new local brand of hotdog. Well, the brand Frabelle is not actually "new" as this company has been making waves in the fishing industry since the early 1960s. The company started out as a one-trawler fishing venture that eventually grew into a massive enterprise that supplies fresh and frozen seafood products in the local and international market,  real estate and processed food to name a few. In my supermarket trips I seen Frabelle processed fish products and even tried the Cream Dory. Yummy! Not bad at all! Would Frabelle's processes meat products have the same high quality? There's only one way to find out. I bought several kinds of Frabelle meat products for a taste test.

Frabelle's Longganiza

The first product that I panfried was Frabelle's Longganiza Recado. D4 was home for lunch that day and between the two of us, we almost finished the 500 g package. It was deliciously garlicky,  spicy and sweet! The consistency of the longganiza was "all meat".  I dipped mine in vinegar and my mouth almost exploded with flavor. Frabelle's :Longganiza Hamonado was also delicious with that distinctive smokey flavor.

The following day, my son was home early. Since I did not prepare anything for lunch, I decided to cook Frabelle's Pork Ham Tocino. I decided to pair the Tocino with sunny side egg and garlic fried rice. This is the first time that I opened up a pack of  Tocino sans the fat! The Tocino was all meat, tender tasty and perfect to the bite.

Frabelle's Pork Ham Tocino

 The following Saturday, I decided to cook carbonara for dinner. I decided to use Frabelle's Hickory Smoked Bacon. I sliced the bacon, fried them to a crisp then added the fettucini and carbonara sauce. After arranging the pasta in the serving dish I added parmesan and grated cheddar on the pasta. Was it good? Well,  I guess it was as there was nothing left of the pasta.  D3 said, the bacon bits was interesting as it added a smokey hickory flavor on the pasta dish. 

Frabelle's Hickory Smoked Bacon

The following day, I decided to cook some Frabelle Yummy Hotdog and Cheesedog for snacks. The kids were all home, so was Ethan. My grandson is what I'd call a hotdog connoisseur. He will not eat any hotdog that does not meet his standards and believe me when I say that. D2 and Ethan are such picky eaters that it irritates me to a point. The two won't eat any hotdog except for the leading brand. If these two will eat Frabelle's Yummy hotdog and Cheesedog, that would be an exceptional event. Let's see. 

Frabelle's Yummy Hotdog

Frabelle's Cheesedogs

I panfried the hotdog and cheesedog in a Teflon pan. I toasted some wheat bread to go with the hotdogs.  I called D2 and Ethan to eat the hotdogs without telling them that it's a different brand. Oh well, there was no need to tell them that it wasn't their favorite brand as they were able to tell right off the bat! Of course they refused to eat the hotdogs! I asked them ever so kindly to "please just taste the hotdog and cheesedog". D2 and Ethan grudgingly agreed. I had to cross my fingers for the tensed moment before and after the first bite. I was so relief when the two picky eaters actually loved Frabelle hotdog and cheesedog. D2 said the hotdog was meaty and has none of that funny consistency that other hotdogs have. She said it's not salty and has a slight smokey taste that she likes. Ethan said "It's delicious mom! I  love it!" Ever notice how hotdogs generally get wrinkled when exposed to air, well not Frabelle's hotdogs.

All of Frabelle's processed meat products are made from quality meat cuts, blended with just the right amount of spices, and cured and smoked with imported woodchips. All products are blast-frozen to keep the them fresh and preserve the taste.

At a price several notches below its competitors, Frabelle processed food products are a bargain. Need I say more? 

Of Amplifiers and Speakers

Located in one corner of the church are some amplifiers and speakers that are ready for the junk yard. I asked the church custodian why those broken amplifiers and speakers are still sitting near one of the church's entrances blocking traffic. He said one of the assistant pastors plan on working on them when he finds the time. Well, I don't think the assistant pastor will find the time to fix those amplifiers and speakers anytime soon as he is so loaded with work. Meanwhile, I suggested that it is time the church buy some amazing Amplifiers in time for the church anniversary.