Lloyd Umali Live...

Lloyd Umali had a show at Bistro Filipino in Jamaica, New York. It was a good show and most of the pinoys loved it. Personally, I didn't know much about his songs but because he is a filipino artist I watched the show. It's not about being baduy but it's about going out and having fun with your friends and your wife. The show had a surprised guest, Stella Ruiz who watched the show and was being called by Lloyd to sing a few song. She wasn't really a good singer but she wasn't bad too. She's still pretty and sexy.

Lloyd sang mostly 80's rock songs. I did like it when he sang one of my favorite from Bryan Adams "Summer of 69". What surprised me is he only sang one song from his albums. I can't remember the title but It was in tagalog.

Well, It was a good night and a good show for $20.

4th of July

...Here I am again after a month of away from blogging...4th of July had past and I realized I haven't made any post last month...

...Last 4th of July we had a Bar-B-Q party with Dorothy's family, Rogie and Orestes...The food was great and the singing never stopped...Unfortunately for us though, we are not able to see the fireworks because they had it on the other side of Manhattan (Hudson river side)...I was not able to capture the fireworks with my camera but I captured the party moments...

Game 7 anyone?

Last night was the best 2009 NBA playoff basketball game I've watched on TV. It was game 6 between Chicago Bulls vs Boston Celtics (my L.A. Lakers rival). I'm rooting for the Celtics (the team I despise) in this series because I think Celtics (aside from the Lakers) is the legitimate team that could beat the Cavs, and eventually meet my L.A. Lakers in the finals again (that if Lakers wins all their playoff series).

The game was from the start very physical. You could see pushing, elbows and shoving in the game. The referee tried to control it but when emotions really plays, I dunno what would people do. I was watching close at Rondo because he did throw a hard foul against Brad Miller and decked Kirk Heinrich on game 6 and didn't even received a technical foul on that game. On game 7, Rondo pull Heinrich into the officials table and only got a flagrant 1 foul. I could see the officials don't wants to make any bad decision that could make an impact on the series. For what Rondo did, I think he deserves to be ejected or if not, suspended. I would prefer ejection over suspension though. NBA should explain why they didn't eject Rondo on the game. He did cause a ruckus on the game by doing it to Heinrich. Well, after all of the circus or should I call it side shows, the game was really great. Ray Allen had a playoff high with 51 points for the Celtics and John Salmons had 35 points for the Bulls. They just cant be stopped last night. The game went into 3 overtime. It was a thriller and guess who made the winning shot. It was a fast break dunk by Noah. He made the steal off Paul Pierce and dribbled all the way to the basket (which I think took forever for him to reach the basket) and a dumb shooting foul by Paul Pierce that sent him to the bench with 6 fouls. The Celtics countered a two that made it a one point ball game. A miss from Heinrich that gave Celtics the last chance to get the win but a good defensive play by Derrick Rose by blocking Rondo's shot. The Bulls win.

What a game it was. It made my housemate scream OMG all night. She want the Celtics to win the game last night. I was for the Bulls. I want to see the Celtics get tested before they face LBJ's team. Maybe they could find ways to stop Lebron again (just like last year) and face the Lakers. Lakers will beat any team from the east. Lakers will be the 2009 NBA Champions.

Lakers for life.......

Ginamay (Bisaya) or Menudo

Ginamay or Menudo is a Filipino dish similar to beef or pork stew but sauteed style.

This is what I love cooking here in New York, I could cook the dishes that I really want to cook because I could find almost all of the ingredient I want. Back when I was in Johnstown, PA, It was hard to cook something very Filipino. I have to travel 1 1/2 to 2 hours to be able to buy from the oriental store in Pittsburgh. In New York, I just have to walk a block or two and there I am in the oriental store buying the ingredients I need for my Ginamay.

This dish is actually one of my favorite, so, I kinda love cooking it. I remember cooking this dish almost everyday when I was still in college. I like it because it's sweet (I got a sweet tooth) and I like anything that has tomato sauce (that's why I like spaghetti). Sometimes, I cook this with condensed milk instead of sugar to make this dish sweet and it makes the dish creamier.

So, this is how I made this dish:

Ingredients:

1/2 lb(s) Chicken Liver (Cut in small pieces)
1/2 lb(s) Pork cube (Cut in small pieces)
2 pcs Carrots (Cut in cubes)
2 pcs Potato (Cut in cubes)
2 Bell Pepper (Green and Red)
1/4 Green Beans or Snow Peas (Can be cut in halves or as it is)
1/4 Cabbage (Chop in small pieces)
2 Cloves of Garlic (Minced)
1 Onion (Minced)
1/2 Cup Water
1/2 Cup Tomato Sauce
1 Hotdog (Chop in slants)*
Raisins (as desired)
Sugar (as desired)
Salt (as desired)

Procedure:

1. Saute garlic and onions (Don't let the garlic and onion get over cooked**).
2. Add pork and let brown or done.
3. Add the liver and let it cook for a few minutes (maybe 5 - 7 mins.) then add soy sauce (maybe 2 or 3 tsp).
4. Add potato and water and let it simmer until the potato are soft.
5. Add the carrots and green beans or Snow Peas. Let it simmer for 5 Mins.
6. Add tomato sauce and let it boil.
7. Add Sugar and salt to taste. (Add sugar and salt gradually until you think the taste is enough for you***)
8. Add the cabbage and let it simmer for 3-5 mins.
9. Serve it hot and good to eat.

* I prefer the hotdog made in the Philippines (Purefoods Tender Juicy hotdog) but it's ok if you could find any in filipino store as long as it's the red one.
** The reason you don't let the garlic and onions get over cooked is it could affect the taste. It could make the dish bitter because of the over cooked garlic and onions.
*** To make your dish taste good, It's better to add salt and sugar gradually because sometimes we don't know when is enough for the dish to taste good. We don't have the same taste buds as they say or In this part of cooking, you add it as you desired until you are satisfied with the taste.

My first Parking Ticket

Hay! I feel so dumb today when I got my first parking ticket. I paid $115 just to park on that spot. Well, It's a result of not reading the signs before parking. So, from now on I will read the signs and I will try to be cautious to avoid parking tickets or any tickets because it's so expensive. I could had bought a new external hard drive with that money.

It will never happen again...I hope...

Welcome to blogging

"Hello world!" is what most newbie say on the programming world.

Blogging is a new experience for me.

It's hard to write something that would be a good topic specially for a person who could not write something unless his drunk or has a deadline to beat. In my case I am that kind of person, I need a deadline or beer to inspire me on writing about something. I need to be depressed or upset just to write something. I need to be drunk so that my head will feel heavy and ideas will just come on my mind. I need to have a deadline to really feel the need to write, I guess it's adrenaline rush for me.

I remember back in my college days. I have to write a story about somebody else in my literature class. I drink a couple of beer and a few hour of being alone just to write a good story. Well, the result was good and I think I had a very high grade for that. I guess being drunk or feeling depressed could make my mind work, and eventually could make me write something that make sense.

Today, I'm not drunk but I'm feelin' lonely today even if my wife is in the bed sleeping (tired from work). I feel lonely because I wasn't able to talk to my Papa, Mama, Mannix and my favorite brother Nikko (our youngest) over the internet because their audio has a problem again. I missed them so much that it made me write about me blogging my first blog.

Again, Hello World!...