Birthday Weekend

This weekend marked my last day as a 31-year old and my first day as a 32-year old. Let me share how I celebrated both days through some pictures ...

We deliberated long and hard about what to do for the weekend but because of the cold weather, our options were limited. So we spent Saturday sleeping in, waking up leisurely, then driving to downtown LA for a historic walking tour of the city. Before moving to Torrance, I lived in LA for 3 years but have never really explored downtown. It is a fascinating place and many of the buildings are historical in architecture. Of course the diversity of people is quite fascinating too.

We had an early lunch at the Grand Central Market - (see below). It is an indoor farmers market with fresh and dried produce, bakeries, fruit stands and food stalls of every kind.

Here is a look inside. There were a number of interesting stalls serving all kinds of food - Chinese, Mexican , Japanese, Indian, Peruvian, Middle Eastern, etc., etc. All of them seemed authentic too. The food promised to be fresh as well since there were vegetable and fruit stands, spice stores, and bread stalls all over.

After careful deliberation, we decided to go for Middle Eastern food since it's one thing that's hard to find in Torrance. My hubby had the beef kebab and I had the chicken (seen here). The grilled meat in Middle Eastern food is not much different from other grilled meats I've had before - but what I love best is the long-grained, extra fluffy rice, the grilled tomato and the soft, warm pita bread.

We burned off our lunch by walking around Broadway and exploring small stalls selling a little of everything. When we got to 6th St. my hubby surprised me by telling me to go pick out my birthday present from one of the stores in the Jewelry District of LA. I could pick out anything I wanted from any store (and there are several blocks of them!) selling fine jewelry - if that's not a girl's dream come true, I don't know what is! Here is one of the stores we went into (see below).
After about 2 hours and about 300 stores/stalls, I chose a ring with 15 multi-color semi-precious stones (purple amethysts, green peridots, red garnets, yellow citrines, blue topazes, and a light blue aquamarine) set in white gold. It is very elegant looking and perfect since it came in just my size! I love my new ring - tried taking a picture but none of it came out well so you'll have to imagine what it looks like for now.

After exploring the city, we went home and dressed for dinner. We then met up with the family for my birthday dinner at Lucille's (one of my all-time favorite restaurants). The wait was long because it was a Saturday night and also because we had 16 people in our party. While waiting, we browsed the Barnes & Noble next door. We finally got seated past 8, but it was well worth the wait. Here is one of our appetizers - the appetizer platter for those who can't decide what they want (see below) with chicken wings, quesadillas, jalapeno poppers, chicken tenders, southwestern eggrolls, onion rings, and fried green tomatoes. YUM!
We had baby back ribs and barbecued chicken for dinner plus garlic mashed potatoes, shoestring fries, macaroni and cheese, baked beans and lots of fluffy biscuits with apple butter. Sorry I have no pictures since I got so excited eating I forgot to take one.

Here we are after the meal and after I blew out the candle on my birthday sundae. (Our server took the picture and apparently did not take a good one since it's so blurred!)
After dinner we went to in-laws' place where I opened my birthday presents. Again no pictures cause I was too excited over all my presents :)

On Sunday, my hubby and I drove to the Temecula vineyards to celebrate my actual birthday. Temecula is only an hour and a half away from Torrance but it seems like a world away. I love Temecula (city) and thought the vineyards (which were close by to downtown) were just as lovely as Napa and Sonoma.

Our first stop was the Maurice Car'rie vineyards (see below). I loved the charming buildings.

Inside, they had a lovely wine and gift shop. They also had a tasting counter where you could taste their house specialties. We bought my dad a bottle of Riesling (his favorite) and we also treated ourselves to a huge loaf of sourdough bread (fresh out of the oven!). The place was not that busy and it was great chatting with the staff who were all really friendly.

Next door to the gift shop was The Plantation House, a lovely restaurant with beautiful wood floors and furnishings, bright white shutters and a very laid back "southern style" decor. We met Larry Leonard, the owner, who congratulated us for being the last customers to order brunch (it was almost noon when we walked in). Here is my hubby's Salmon Eggs Benedict and potato pancake. I had eggs over easy, home-made sausage, fruit, and multi-grain toast (not as fancy looking).

Outside, the day was GORGEOUS (sunny but cool at 65-degrees). Most of the vineyards were barren (see below) because it is winter here! But you can imagine how lush they will be once Spring comes. I loved the orange groves too (to the left of the picture). Everything looked so postcard-worthy! And the view of the mountains ... just breathtaking!

Our next stop was the Ponte Winery (about half a mile away). See picture below. This was my favorite of all the wineries we went to. I loved how charming the place was especially the beautiful gardens behind the front structure. I could not take a picture since a wedding was going on and I didn't want to seem intrusive. But it was so beautiful - I actually wished I was still planning my own wedding since I would have loved to have celebrated it at the Ponte Winery gardens. Jojo said we'll just have to celebrate our future "daughter's" wedding there.

Ponte Winery had a great deli too with so many wonderful looking spreads, dips, jams, preserves, cheeses, breads. I was awestruck. We bought a jar of arugula and pine nut pesto and a jar of lime and mint marinade to take home.

We went to two other wineries (Wiens and Thornton and both were newish and not as expansive as the first two) before calling it a day. Our last stop was The Olive Oil Company which was in Old Town Temecula (another collection of charming, small town-looking shops). The Olive Oil Company boasted of fresh olive oil and everything you can imagine making with olive oil. They also had an olive oil tasting bar (we passed on that) but we did get a bottle of oil seeped with garlic cloves and a jar of sun-dried tomatoes with olive oil.

After a lovely day in Temecula and two great days of celebrating, my hubby and I ended the weekend by going to mass at, St. Philomena, our parish.

It was a great birthday and I thank everyone for the greetings, emails, text messages, gifts and phone calls. THANK YOU for remembering. Hope you guys enjoy these pictures and somehow get to share this special time with me too.

P.S. Belated happy birthday to my dear friends Karen (the 17th), Jogs (the 18th), and Tash (the 20th) and advanced happy anniversary to my mom and dad (the 22nd)!

Resolutions

I’ve never been one to make resolutions for the new year. It’s just never struck me as something to do and besides I think the “pressure” of setting a new year’s resolution adds to the anxiety of trying to keep the resolution. I read somewhere that most people stress over keeping their resolutions and as a result break them within a few days or weeks after setting them. So, to clarify, this is not a list of new year’s resolutions, but just things I am going to try to work on for the coming year.

1.) I am going to try to start eating healthier. This goes for my hubby too. We are not getting any younger and I think it’s time to start thinking about the kind of things we eat and drink. For the record, I am not swearing off everything. I mean, what would be the point of living if one could not have the occasional caramel macchiato, tortilla chips and salsa, buffalo wings and that second helping of pizza? But I do see the point in making wiser choices and keeping things in moderation. At this point, we are lucky to have the luxury of making changes because we want to rather than because we have to (which would just make me feel deprived!).

Lately, because of busy schedules and because of our love for culinary pursuits – our eating habits have been … quite challenged … to say the least. I had a conversation with my mom a few days ago and her advise was eating healthier does not have to be more work but it does take a little bit more of planning. So, this weekend, Jojo and I came up with a sort of eating plan and went to Costco to stock up on ingredients for that plan. Hopefully, as mom said, this planning will keep us away from frozen dinners, canned soup, junk food, and take out meals!

2.) Exercise. Yes, I’ve thrown the “e” word out there! No major promises here – but we have taken our exercise machine out of the garage and parked it in front of the tv (blocking the view from the sofa). Now if that’s not an incentive to start using that thing, I don’t know what is! We’ve also made plans to go on afternoon walks during the weekend (does walking around the mall count?) and maybe on weekdays too when the weather gets a bit warmer and the daylight lasts longer. But since our work schedules are really bad, we’ve added housework to our exercise regime as well.

3.) Relax and take mini-vacations. My hubby and I have not been on a vacation in ages. Our home is the vacation destination for many of our friends and family (which is great too!) – but we ourselves have not been on one since … well … not in a very long time. Although we still do not have the time and luxury of dropping work and jetting off to Europe for a month, we are certainly going to try planning a few weekend or week-long getaways whenever we can.

4.) Try not to take work too seriously. This one will probably be the hardest one of all. But I have to try put things in perspective. Life is too short and it is not worth stressing over things I have no control over. I will sincerely try to do this … or may have to find something else that is less stressful! We’ll see.

There are many other things that I can think of – but we’ll have to take this slowly. We’ll see how it goes with the first four and maybe I’ll make a few more mid-year “resolutions”.

Dad's Advice

Every Friday night I spend at least two hours on the phone with my mom and dad. We talk about everything that happened the past week. My parents share tidbits about what’s up with family and friends in Manila and what's going on in their lives. I talk about upcoming weekend plans and what's new on my end too. It’s our chance to catch up and reconnect. I look forward to these conversations since it’s also my week-end detoxification session where I unwind from the stress of my busy week and gripe about my work angst. These conversations are actually very therapeutic for me and my week is never complete without that phone call. Talking to them allows me to talk to two people who are never-ending in their support and encouragement for me. But believe me when I tell you, it’s definitely not all fluff and ego-boosting either. Since it’s a conversation with two people who know me inside out, our talks are peppered with good advice and doses of constructive criticism when needed.

Last Friday was no different, while I was moaning about not being able to do my best on a project I was working on, my dad shared with me this piece of advice. He said “it’s okay to make a mistake. We all make mistakes. What’s bad is making the same mistake twice”. He even shared with me that sometimes he tells his own employees to go ahead and “make a mistake” since as humans that’s what we do. No one is perfect and we all have to make mistakes some time. But, in the end, we should learn from that mistake and grow from that experience. What is sad and downright stupid is actually making the same mistake over and over again. The more I think about what he said – the more I agree and think that his advice is so simple yet so profoundly true – and in my case, right on the money.

What Really Matters

The media has ruined romance for most of us. Because of romance books, love stories on the big screen, and glorified heroes rescuing fair heroines, most of us grow up with the wrong impression of what love is or what kind of love to expect. This is the 21^st century and in real life, how many international movie stars fall in love with nobodies who manage bookstores in Notting Hill? Where are the dashing kings who willingly abdicate their throne to marry the women they love? How many of us have recently run into a prince who would slay a dragon to win the hand of a fair maiden? And honestly, has anyone recently heard of a fairy godmother who grants wishes and happily ever afters?

I don’t mean to be cynical, after all the magic of falling in love and being in love still happens each and every day. But I’m also being a bit more realistic. Love and romance isn’t all that it’s cut out to be. I, too, grew up with dreams of a guy sweeping me off my feet. Falling madly in love with a man who would give me the stars and the moon and everything my heart desired. A guy who would watch me in my sleep, draw my portrait from memory, write me poetry, and sing me love songs. Growing up, my girlfriends and I have giggled over debonair, successful, worldly, elegant, brilliant and perfect Prince Charmings who would have eyes only for us and whose world would revolve around making us happy.

But the realist in me says “wake up!”. True love like that would be boring. Diamond rings and bouquets of flowers lose their meaning. Love songs and poetry get trite. We need to look out for the little things that have the most meaning because they come from the heart. It’s easy to say you love someone – but having to show it on days where you are sad, stressed, overworked, homesick, exhausted and down is when it really counts. Romance should not only happen in big sporadic events – but in the day to day, little moments when no one is watching and when it is least anticipated.

I am lucky I am married to such a guy. He shows “romance” in the most unexpected and unconventional ways. He’s not big on major public displays of affection and on grandiose schemes contrived to woo me. But in many little ways his displays of affection are sweet, consistent and heartfelt. No, I didn’t get the moon and the stars for Xmas, but I did get a gorgeous pair of aquamarine earrings (that were on my wish list!). No, he does not watch me in my sleep, but he does call me every day at noon, on the dot, to make sure I’m doing ok at work. No, I don’t get my portrait drawn from memory, but I do have toothpaste on my toothbrush waiting for me every morning. No, I don’t get poems dedicated just for me, but I do get the last piece of pizza whenever we share a pie. No, he does not serenade me with songs composed just for me but he does burn CDs filled with my favorite sappy songs (even though his taste in music is very different). And, no, I don’t get everything my heart desires, but I do have someone who makes me laugh whenever I am down.

And in the long run, it’s the little every day things that matter. I’ll gladly take aquamarines over the moon and the stars. I’ll take that last piece of pizza over a poem just for me. I’ll take a CD filled with my favorite songs over a single song composed in my honor, especially if it means waking up next to someone who makes me smile.

My Annual Xmas Letter

This Xmas letter was sent to all my dearest and bestest
friends. I try to send one every year since Xmas letters
are a great way to stay in touch - especially if you have
friends who live all over.  Ideally, the letter should be
hand-delivered (when I come over and they hand me their
gifts!)or at least mailed with a lovely Xmas card - it
just seems a bit more personal that way. This year, though,
most of my friends will find it in their e-mailboxes instead.
BUT only because I wanted people to get it while it was
still the Holiday Season. Sorry. I'll try to do better next
year, I promise!

Thought I'd post it on my blog in case I missed anyone
and they just happen to be reading my blog ...


Dear Friends,

This letter is long overdue …  emphasis on the words "long" and
"overdue".  As a result, it begins with an apology. I am so sorry
for  not being better at keeping in touch.  No excuses –
just an apology.

Before I go any further, wishes for a Belated Merry Christmas
and a Wonderful New Year to everyone.  I hope, that as you
find yourselves in the midst of the holiday season, you can
find it in your hearts to forgive a friend who has been so
bad at keeping in touch.

The past year has gone by in one big whoosh!  Lots of things
have happened.  For starters, I joined a new company in July.
After working as an external consultant for a consulting firm
for almost 3 years, I decided to make the switch and move to
being an internal consultant / trainer for an Asian financial
company. At first, I asked myself – “What was I thinking”
– I know nothing about finance!  My math skills are sadly
lacking.  And despite being born Chinese – my 13 years at
ICA has not taught me to speak Chinese even if my life
depended on it!  It’s been a tough 5 months – but these days
I am slowly able to catch my breath and am learning to "wing it".

Jojo started a new job as an IT Specialist last October.  He no
longer works for an anime company (no more free comics for
him – which is the only downer). His new company manu-
factures and sells printers and ink cartridges (yay! free ink!). 
He does have a much shorter commute though.  I guess we are
THE lucky LA couple since we both live 15 minutes away from
where we work. Unheard of in LA. It’s sweet!  What we save on
gas money we’ve been able to pour into other more exciting
activities … I’ll let you know when we have the time to come
up with them!

The past year we have had many out of town visitors. Always a
good thing.  The highlight was having my entire family over last
May.  All 7 Js.  It was awesome.  Lots of people and only 3
bathrooms – but awesome nonetheless!  We also had lots of
friends come visit. It's been great.  There were times when we 
had several groups overlap – which prompted my dad to suggest
we hang up a whiteboard with a calendar to make sure we didn’t
overbook our hotel/home.  But, Jojo and I don’t mind, it’s
always great to have friends over :)

We didn’t get to do much traveling this year, since with new jobs,
we were trying to get adjusted before taking any time off.  But we
did have lots of time to work on our home and grow a garden.
Okay, okay, so Jojo did most of the garden work – but I “helped”
too!  Next year we are hopefully planning on taking a few much
needed and well deserved vacations!

More of our 2006 highs and lows: I’ve started a local bookclub
which is all about a group of great women and getting to read
great books.  I’ve had several dental dilemmas (a crown, root
canal and lost filling all in one year!).  Jojo got a new car (since
we have no kids  or pets – we have started naming our cars!
Is that sad?). We went to Las Vegas twice in 3 months (not to 
gamble but to hang out in our hotel rooms – my kind of vacation).
Had grand, grand reunions – with high school friends and
friends from Jewelmer.  Jojo’s sister got married two weeks ago
– and it was just beautiful.  We’ve enjoyed our nieces and nephews
and are still the reigning "cool aunt and uncle".  We celebrated
my 31st this year, and Jojo’s 38th, as well as our 2nd wedding 
anniversary.  Time flies!  My brother, Jules graduated from his
MBA and the twins are done with college.  It was great to celebrate
that with them too.  I went back to school earlier this year to get
certified in HR and my hubby is going thru self-schooling hoping
to get CISSP certified too.

More news: I went thru about 3 months of job searching which
was a true test of patience and one’s self-confidence until finally
landing the job I now have.  Then it was tough saying good-bye to
my old job and leaving familiar faces and friends.  On the other
hand, my hubby found his new job without even trying – after
one interview! And had no trouble saying good-bye to his old job.
How fair is that! My blog turned 1-year old this year. Our
backyard  orange tree turned two (sadly still no fruit!).

It’s been a tiring, exciting, happy, wonderful, stressful, hectic,
super, great year.

And as for the question that I know is on everyone’s minds, the
answer is “NOPE, we are not pregnant yet”. But we are hoping
that 2007 will be THE year. Hopefully my next Xmas letter will
have some baby news  included.  Wouldn’t that be great?

On that note, I hope you are all having the happiest of holidays.
God bless you and your families.  Have a wonderful 2007.   AND,
I am really looking forward to hearing about what’s up with each
one of you!

Love,
Joanne and Jojo