iPhone365 #354: memorial day

In Flanders Fields
-John A. McCrae (1872 – 1918)

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved, and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
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iPhone365 #353: turmeric

I never thought fresh turmeric would look like this. I always thought it was a nut or a fruit.
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iPhone365 #352: roxie

Our house guest checks out the backyard.
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iPhone365 #351: no toast

Ran out of toast. Fried eggs on Arabic bread isn't bad.
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IPhone365 #350: eggs

Q. How can you tell a boiled egg from a fresh egg without breaking the shell?
A. The fresh egg will not spin.
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iPhone365 #349: yellow squash

Norman just found a yellow squash in their farm in Farmville!
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iPhone365 #348: beef whatever

No garlic in the kitchen. Too lazy to run to the store. Found some garlic powder which worked just as well. Beef, broccoli, red pepper, some spices, and a drop of oyster sauce.

Now I'm full and ready for bed.
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iPhone365 #347: lunch

Coworker: Are you on a diet?
Me: No, why?
C: You're having one small pear for lunch?
M: No. I just finished eating. That's why this tupperware here is empty.
C: What'd you have?
M: Oh, just some leftover chicken stuff. And this pear.
C: Are you on a diet?
M: No, why?
C: That's a small tupperware.
M: I'm a small guy. I have a small stomach. You having lunch?
C: No, I'm on a diet.
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iPhone365 #346: bird of paradise

Purple, white, and blue. And big.
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bp oil leak haiku

Mother is bleeding.
The parasites are scrambling
While pointing fingers.

iPhone365 #345: windy day

A cold and windy day in the middle of May. Snow expected in the mountains. Strange.
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iPhone365 #344: zucchini

Norman just found two baby zucchini on their farm in Farmville!

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iPhone365 #343: jury duty

Waiting for the trolley at America Plaza after a long day at the courthouse. Jury duty is one of the few times when I PRAY not to be picked.
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iPhone365 #342: thou shalt not

Posted on the kitchen refrigerator at work. What's funny is that (1) people actually do it and (2) we need to be told to not do it.

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iPhone365 #341: vine ripe... again

Mango juice, Nutella, and Arabic bread.

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iPhone365 #340: growing, growing

The veggies in Farmville are growing. Glad that there are no lost cows or sheep wandering into it.

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iPhone365 #339: green barf head

I think of Karen whenever I see this little green barf head. Squeezing the head makes a balloon full of "junk" pops out of the mouth. I bought it on my last trip to Los Angeles with Karen on one of her many competitions, where we drove around taking pictures of graffiti and found this warehouse store of cheap toys and novelty items. Now the barf head is empty. The balloon had a hole and the junk, balloon and all, simply fell out of the mouth. And now Karen lives on the other coast. She needs to come back for another road trip to L. A. so I can get a working barf head.
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clalamansi juice recipe

I am too lazy to go to the Filipino markets in town, so the only times I get my hands on calamansi is whenever my Ate Sally or Ninang Ching hands me a grocery bag full of the fruit from their trees. 

Even after splitting it up to give away to other people, I am usually left with a bunch that is more than I need for a couple of plates of pansit. So instead of making pansit everyday for a week, the next best thing to do is make juice out of it.

After a couple of attempts to get a good balance between pure calamansi juice and water to make a great-tasting drink (to my preference, anyway), I finally found a good combination that makes a mild and sweet beverage:

1/2 cup fresh-squeezed calamansi juice
5 cups water
6 tbsp sugar

If you like it tart/sour, add more calamansi juice (up to 3/4 cup).  I think more than that makes it too sour.  Adjust the amount of sugar to taste.  If you use artificial sweetener, you're on your own.

Pour the squeezed juice through a strainer if you want no pulp, or just fish out the seeds if you want some pulp in your juice.

What I like about making my own is that I know what goes in it -- no chemicals, no preservatives.  The only caveat is that I have to finish it as soon as possible.  Now that is not a problem.

iPhone365 #338: chillin'

Saturday off the grid: no phones, no pc, no TV. Just me and Eli sitting (and soon sleeping) in the backyard.

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iPhone365 #337: snuggle

Eli snuggles as I watch Hulu.

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iPhone365 #336: more irises

In full bloom.

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iPhone365 #335: toeing the line

The Big Project went on hold in 2007. The Big Project is picked up again, and today is the kick-off. I'm ready to run.

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iPhone365 #334: early flight

A clear San Diego morning greets us on our way to the airport for Marilyn's flight back to New England.

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iPhone365 #333: vine ripe dinner

Buying as much for almost 1/3 the price made me decide I'm not doing my grocery shopping at the major chain supermarkets anymore.

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iPhone365 #332: sleeping in

Long night partying...

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iPhone365 #331: vampires

I killed five vampires today: wireless landline phones whose charging bases quietly suck energy off the grid while the handsets sit unused, gathering dust. Just call me Van Helsring.

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iPhone365 #330: bike to work

I decided to try doing a car-less Friday. I liked it. I might start doing it every Friday.

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iPhone365 #329: corn shoots

The corn shoots have appeared.

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iPhone365 #328: bamboo fence

Six feet tall, six feet wide, almost sixty-five dollars. Why is bamboo so damn expensive?
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iPhone365 #327: white mulberries

I am crazy about the fruit. Now my coworkers are, too.
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iPhone365 #326: calamansi

I had enough leftover calamansi (calamondin) from Ate Sally's tree to make 2 jugs of juice.

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iPhone365 #325: nieces and new nephew

Daytrip to Twentinine Palms to see The Girls (my nieces) and The Boy (my brand-new nephew).

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iPhone365 #324: our house

I just came home from the San Diego Gay Men's Chorus concert "Our House" at the Birch North Park Theater. Good show. Makes me want to sing again.

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