Fridays Feast 195

Appetizer: What is the weather like today where you live?
Filipinos don't discuss the weather (since it's hot year-round, weather is a boring topic of conversation). So I'll just say that it was nice.

Soup: On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being highest, how career-minded are you?
Once upon a time, I was a 7 or 8. But as they say, motherhood changes everything. So now it's down to a 4 or 5. Maybe things will change once the kids are all at school, but I will always work to live, not live to work.

Salad: What type of window coverings do you have in your home? Blinds, curtains, shutters, etc.?
We have a mix of wooden plantation shutters and curtains.

Main Course: Name something that instantly cheers you up.
Watching my children sleep.

Dessert: How many times do you hit the snooze button on a typical morning?
When I have to set an alarm, I almost always wake up before the alarm goes off, just waiting for the alarm to go off.

Fridays Feast #193

Appetizer : Do you consider yourself to be an optimist or a pessimist?
An optimist.

Soup : What is your favorite color of ink to write with?
I don't have a preference.

Salad: How often do you get a manicure or pedicure? Do you do them yourself or go to a salon and pay for them?
I don't consider painting my toes or nails at home to be a proper manicure or pedicure. I love manis & pedis but they are strictly a treat for me. I tend to get them done only when I visit the Philippines, because it's so cheap to have it done there (approx. $2 - $5)!

Main Course: Have you ever won anything online? If so, what was it?
Yes! I won a gift box full of eco-friendly home cleaners from mod*mom, and more recently I won a set of Mommy Cards from MomViews. And for anyone who has never won anything online, go to my review site here! I've got a couple of nice giveaways going on and the chances of winning are pretty good :)

Dessert : In which room in your house do you keep your home computer?
We have a desk on our upstair landing and our home computer and laptop are both on it.
For more feasts, click here.

Fridays Feast

Appetizer: When someone smiles at you, do you smile back?
Yes, I do.

Soup: Describe the flooring in your home. Do you have carpet, hardwood, vinyl, a mix?
We have hardwood in every room of the house except the bathroom (tiles) and the kids' bedroom (carpet).

Salad: Write a sentence with only 5 words, but all of the words have to start with the first letter of your first name.
Arthur Andersen ate Annie's apples.

Main Course: Do you know anyone whose life has been touched by adoption?
A good friend of mine recently adopted a 2-year-old from India. They are one big, happy family -- mom, dad, 2 big sisters, and their beautiful new baby sister.

Dessert: Name 2 blue things.
My husband's eyes.



For more feasts, click here.

And now for some fluffy stuff....

I could (and will) blog about Haitians eating mud cakes to ward off hunger, or about how people are still dying from malaria. But for now I will blog about a different kind of feast. And I am doubly grateful to be able to blog about trivial as well as serious things...

Appetizer
Name something you would categorize as weird.
I hear the new James Bond movie is jinxed.....oooooh!

Soup
What color was the last piece of food you ate?
I had a brownie and it was a rich, chocolatey brown. Yum......

Salad
On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being highest, how much do you enjoy being alone?
9 -- I like having time to myself. I will happily shop, watch a movie, or take a walk all alone.

Main Course
Fill in the blank: I will NOT vote for JOHN McCAIN in NOVEMBER (actually, I won't be voting for any candidate since I'm not a US citizen)

Dessert
Describe your sleeping habits.
I sleep like Dracula, straight on my back with my hands clasped together on my stomach. Alfie says I don't even close my eyes properly so you can see the whites rolling around!

Time to Feast!

I haven't participated in a Fridays Feast meme for quite a while, so here goes..

Appetizer : Name a color you find soothing.
Powder blue, the blue of my bedroom.

Soup : Using 20 or less words, describe your first driving experience.
I was 17. My instructor was a funny little man who kept droning, "shift", "clutch", "half-brake", until I got it.

Salad : What material is your favorite item of clothing made out of?
Soft, comfy knit cotton.

Main Course : Who is a great singer or musician who, if they were to come to your town for a concert, you would spend the night outside waiting for tickets to see?
I don't think Iwould ever spend the night in line for tickets for anyone -- I'd rather watch it on TV!

Dessert: What is the most frequent letter of the alphabet in your whole name (first, middle, maiden, last, etc.)?
The letter "A" -- it appears 6 times in my full name (I have 5 names in my full name!)

For more feasts, click here.

Fridays Feast #183

Appetizer: On a scale of 1-10 (with 10 as highest), how much do you like your own handwriting?
I like it a lot, so I'd say a 9. I think it's neat and even and easily understood.

Soup: Do you prefer baths or showers?
Showers -- I hate the idea of sitting in dirty water.

Salad: What was the last bad movie you watched?
The Golden Compass. It was so disappointing!

Main Course: Name something you are addicted to and describe how it affects your life.
I'm addicted to the internet, need I say more?

Dessert: Which instrument is your favorite to listen to?
I love the acoustic guitar.

For more feasts, click here. Or click here to join my Ultimate Blog Party -- I'm hosting a blog giveaway and you could win a subscription to Bon Appetit or Budget Travel!

Fridays Feast

Appetizer: If you could be any current celebrity for one whole week, who would you want to be?
I would be Oprah, so I can use my celebrity status to do good and help people out.

Soup: On a scale of 1-10 (with 10 being highest), how much do you enjoy talking on the phone?
I actually dislike talking on the phone, so I would say 0 or 1. Even as a teenager, I never spent hours on the phone the way everyone else did. I much prefer email or speaking to someone directly.

Salad: Name a charitable organization to which you have donated (or would like to).
We donate to the Arthritis Foundation and Goodwill every year.

Main Course: What is a food you like so much you could eat it every single day for a month?
Soup!

Dessert: Have you or anyone in your family had the flu this year?
We have all had it -- twice! -- except Alfie. The flu shot really saved him this year!

Happy Friday everyone! For more feasts, click here.

Fridays Feast #178

Appetizer: What is your favorite kind of cereal?
I would have to say that my real favorite is Life cereal, because I love the taste but I also love that it is made of whole grains and it's a bit lower in sugar than some of the other super-sweet cereals (9 grams per serving). I love Life! Now don't I sound like a Life commercial?

Soup: When was the last time you purchased something for your home, what was it, and in which room did it go?
For Christmas, Santa Claus gave us a flat screen TV for our living room.

Salad: What is the funniest commercial you’ve ever seen?
I try to fast forward through all commercials whenever possible, but I do laugh out loud when I see those Milwaukee's Best Lite commercials. I know they're completely sexist and play to stereotypes -- men are "punished" for acting in a supposedly girly way by a gigantic beer can falling on them -- but I still think they're hilarious.



Main Course: Make up a name for a company by using a spice and an animal (example: Cinnamon Monkey).
I'll combine two of my favorites: The Ginger Dolphin. Sounds like the name of a funky restaurant!

Dessert: Fill in the blank: I haven’t ______ since ______.
I haven't been online since around 3PM today. I'm already suffering from withdrawal symptoms!

For more feasts, click here.

Fridays Feast #177

Appetizer: How many times per day do you usually laugh?
Maybe once or twice, usually when one of my kids says something funny, or when my husband makes an outrageously corny or idiotic joke (I laugh at him, not the joke).

Soup: What do your sunglasses look like?
I'm not allowed to say; my husband hates them.

Salad: You win a free trip to anywhere on your continent, but you have to travel by train. Where do you go?
I'd love to go to the Grand Canyon, so we have something spectacular to gaze at when we look out of the window!

Main Course: Name one thing you consider a great quality about living in your town/city.
I love the abundance of trees in Palo Alto; they provide shade, they clean the air, and they look great!

Dessert: If the sky could be another color, what color do you think would look best?
I can't think of any way to improve the colors of nature.

For more feasts, click here.

Fridays Feast #175

Appetizer: What is your middle name? Would you change any of your names if you could? If so, what would you like to be called?
Officially, my middle name is Lopez, my mother's maiden name. Everyone in the Philippines does this and I wouldn't change it for anything.

Soup: If you were a fashion designer, which fabrics, colors, and styles would you probably use the most?
I would probably lean towards anything neutral, simple, classic and clean.

Salad: What is your least favorite chore, and why?
Laundry is the bane of my existence -- it just never ends.

Main Course: What is something that really frightens you, and can you trace it back to an event in your life?
We had some thunderstorms recently, and I surprised myself by instinctively stiffening up and covering my ears as soon as I saw the lightning, no matter how hard I tried not to, no matter how I knew that my scared kids were watching me and expecting me to comfort them. I just couldn't stop my hands from flying up to my ears. And it wasn't even a bad thunderstorm. It must be from the thunderstorms we had in Manila when I was a kid, really terrifying, earsplitting cracks of thunder following lightning that made night seem like day. However, I would say that my worst fear would be something really bad happening to anyone in my family. Compared to that, I'll take thunderstorms every minute of the day.

Dessert: Where are you sitting right now? Name 3 things you can see at this moment.
I'm sitting in front of my computer, and I can see the screen, my new ipod, and my husband.

For more feasts, click here.

Fridays Feast #174

Appetizer: When was the last time you received a surprise in the mail, and what was it?
A couple of days ago, we received a box of Joseph Schmidt truffles in the mail. We have no idea who sent them; there was no return address or receipt, and the accompanying card only said, "Happy Winter Solstice". After two seconds of looking at each other and thinking, poison?, we ripped open the cover and dug in. So whoever sent them to us, thank you and please 'fess up!

Soup: If you could have a summer and/or winter home, where would you want it to be?
I would love a vacation home on the beach and on the ski slopes.

Salad: Pick one: pineapple, orange, banana, apple, cherry.
I would pick "orange", but it has to be a seedless clementine orange or satsuma mandarin.

Main Course: Describe the nicest piece of clothing that you own.
Anything that I look thin in.

Dessert: If you could forget one whole day from your life, which day would you choose to wipe from your memory?
I've already forgotten it, so I can't say.

for more feasts, click here.

Fridays Feast #173

Appetizer: Name 2 things you would like to accomplish in 2008.
Attend my cousin's wedding in England this May, and win the lottery. I fear I'm not likely to accomplish either one.

Soup: With which cartoon character do you share personality traits?
I'm a flirt, just like Betty Boop.

Salad: What time of day (or night) were you born?
I was born at around 5AM.

Main Course: Tell us something special about your hometown.
My hometown, Metro Manila, has some of the worst traffic jams in the world. It can take 2 hrs. to travel just 12km -- I can run that distance in less time!

Dessert: If you could receive a letter from anyone in the world, who would you want to get one from?
Santa Claus.

For more feasts, click here.

Fridays Feast #171

Appetizer: What was the last game you purchased?
An electronic Whack-A-Mole game for my son's Christmas present (he said he wants the "guacamole game", so hopefully I didn't misunderstand him!).

Soup: Name something in which you don’t believe.
I don't believe in fairies.

Salad: If you could choose a celebrity to be your boss, who would you pick?
Off the top of my head, I would say Martha Stewart. Yes, I hear she's a bee-yatch, but I respect her work ethic, her perfectionism and her style. I think I could learn a lot from her -- but I don't know how long I would last.

Main Course: What was a lesson you had to learn the hard way?
What goes past the lips ends up on your hips -- I'm still learning this the hard way.

Dessert: Describe your idea of the perfect relaxation room.
A spa.

Fridays Feast #170

Appetizer: What is your favorite carnival/amusement park ride?
I love any kind of free fall ride, the kind that zooms you up into the air and just drops you. I love that feeling of terror when I see how high we are, and of course the feeling in the pit of your stomach as you drop.

Soup: How do you react in uncomfortable social situations?
I just clam up and look around.

Salad: On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being highest, how much do you enjoy discussing deep, philosophical topics?
It depends who I am talking to and what the situation is. If the person I am talking to is in complete agreement with my views, then I would say 9; if the person disagrees with me but is respectful and engaging in intelligent discourse, then I would say 9; if the person disagrees with me and is a ranting, judgmental bore, then I would say 0.

Main Course: Did you get a flu shot this year? If not, do you plan to?
I don't think I will get one this year.

Dessert: Approximately how many hours per week do you spend watching television?
1 hr. of House + 1 hr. of Greys Anatomy + 2 or 3 hours of something else (random shows, movies, etc..) should only equal 4 or 5 hours per week, but somehow I always seem to watch a lot more.

For more feasts, click here.

Fridays Feast #169

Appetizer: What was your first “real” job?
While at college, I danced for a contemporary / jazz dance group led by one of the top dancers/choreographers in the Philippines, Douglas Nierras. Geez -- rehearsals and dance classes till the wee hours of the morning, appearing on tv and stage shows, meeting local celebrities -- it's like looking back on a different person's life. I do miss it, but I also like the fact that my life picture has completely changed, not once, but several times. It certainly makes life more interesting!

Soup: Where would you go if you wanted to spark your creativity?
Paris.

Salad: Complete this sentence: I am embarrassed when…
I am embarrassed when I have to walk around with a monstrous zit on my face.

Main Course: What values did your parents instill in you?
I think the 3 Big Ones they taught were the importance of faith in God, the importance of family, and the importance of a good education.

Dessert: Name 3 fads from your teenage years.
Bubble skirts
Skintight jeans
Culottes

Hey, those sound like fashions that Old Navy would carry! Are the 80's back, or what?

For more feasts, click here.

Fridays Feast #168

Appetizer
Which snack do you like to get when you go to the movies?
Buttered popcorn or ice-cream.

Soup
What year did you start using the internet?
1994. I remember when I first started using Yahoo! on the Stanford campus network and falling in love with it. I should have invested in it way back then!

Salad
What is your first name in Pig Latin?
Onggamom-bay?

Main Course
Name something you are picky about.
I'm pretty easy to please, but once you own a BMW car, it's difficult to drive anything else.

Dessert
Fill in the blanks: I ____ ____ yesterday and I ____ ____ today.
I blogged yesterday and I also blogged today.

For more feasts, click here.

Fridays Feast #167

Appetizer: How much money do you plan to spend this upcoming holiday season? I don't even want to think about it. We'll probably have the same budget for Christmas cards and teacher presents, but there are some big items on Santa's list this year. We're probably going to splurge on a relatively expensive ($90) present for The Pea, Alfie wants a wide-screen TV ($1800) and of course the TV cabinet to go with it ($2500) -- gulp!

Soup: What was the last television show you watched, and was it good?
I watched Grey's Anatomy last night. I'm still holding off judgment on the new season, but I'm pretty pissed that George and Izzy are still together (iiiiick!!). At least I enjoy the eye candy (work it, McSteeeeeammy!).


Salad: If you had to paint the walls of your living room tomorrow, what color would you choose?
I would choose exactly the same color that I chose two years ago, a powdery blue.

Main Course: Name something clever or practical you have thought of that should be invented, but hasn’t yet.
I won't tell you because you might beat me to the patent and the lifetime royalty payments.

Dessert: List 3 things you would like to receive as gifts this upcoming holiday season.
A digital SLR camera
A gift certificate for a spa treatment
A new MP3 player or iPod

Fridays Feast

This was last Friday's Feast at our house -- Halloween party snacks!

Appetizer
Name a great website you would recommend to others.
How about http://www.kidsurplus.com/ for some great deals on children's clothing and toys!

Soup
On a scale of 1-10 (with 10 as highest), how often do you dream at night?
Probably a 5; I don't remember my dreams, so I can't be sure.

Salad
Did you have a pet as a child? If so, what kind and what was its name?
A German Shepherd named Schultzie. He loved spaghetti and meatballs!

Main Course
If you had the chance to star in a commercial, what would you choose to advertise?

Victoria's Secret Lingerie.

Dessert
What is your favorite kind of hard candy?

I don't really like hard candy, but if I had to choose, I would say Fox's Glacier Mints.

For more feasts, click here.

Fridays Feast #165

Appetizer : If you were a dog, what breed would you be, and why?
I don't know anything about dogs, so I don't know. I do know that I don't want to be one of those small lap dogs that yip and yap instead of bark, because then my husband wouldn't like me.

Soup : What does the color purple make you think of?
Right now, spiders, because I'm in the midst of getting the house all decorated for Halloween.

Our dining table centerpiece is all purple and black spiders....

(It looks a lot spookier when the lights are dimmed low)

Salad : Approximately how long does it take you to get ready each morning?
Five minutes -- I get dressed, brush my teeth and wash my face. Mornings are all about everybody else but me -- getting the kids up and dressed, giving them breakfast, making the kids' and Alfie's lunch, getting The Pea to school. My breakfast and shower have to wait till the rush dies down.

Main Course : How many cousins do you have, and are you close to them?
Let me see...... I have 26 first cousins (children of my parents' brothers and sisters), and I've already lost track of how many second cousins I have (children of my parents' first cousins). We have big families in the Philippines! With that many cousins, how can you be close to all of them?

Dessert : Take your initials (first, middle, last) and come up with something else those letters could stand for. (Example: SFO = Sweet Funny Otter)
ALP: A lovely person



For more feasts, click here.

Fridays Feast #164

Appetizer: When was the last time you were surprised?
My daughter's Halloween costume arrived in the mail today; I was pleasantly surprised because I wasn't expecting it until sometime next week.

Soup: Fill in the blanks: My eyes are ______, but I wish they were ____.
My eyes are nearsighted but I wish they were blessed with 20/20 vision.

Salad: If you were a Beanie Baby, what would you look like and what would your name be?
I'm not really into stuffed animals but if I had to choose, I'd probably be Mama the Mouse because my kids would love me and cuddle me anytime.

Main Course: Name two things you consistently do that you consider to be healthy habits.
I eat a good breakfast every morning and walk my daughter to school every day.

Dessert: What brand of toothpaste are you using these days? Do you like it? Why or why not?
I use Crest. As long as the flavor is minty, I don't really care which brand I use.

For more feasts, click here.