Saturday, July 19, 2008

Way Too Busy.....

So, if blogging was a job, I would be fired. I suck. Life has been psychotically busy. We had three apartments in San Francisco coincidentally vacant at the same time. I posted one on Craiglist and received 379 emails from people interested. Not only did I have to respond to the emails but I was trying to do so in a way that they would not be receiving my response at 3am. Bonus was all three units are now rented with only one open house. Gotta love the tight rental market in SF.

We have done more shopping for the house. I am still getting used to where to shop as prices for the exact same item can vary HUGELY from store to store. Items here that are bizarrely expensive include sheets, ziplock bags, mop & glow, furniture polish, and Tupperware type containers. Items that are surprisingly inexpensive are tiki torches, native material place mats, dishes, baskets with lids, and glasses. We also bought a random serving platter for P150. It is branded the Cellar for Macy's. Gotta love the export overruns/rejects. We bought most of our dish items at a place next to Suki Market in QC (about 20 minutes from our house). I still wish there was a Target here so I could stock up on cleaning supplies and wall clocks.

I am closer to grocery stores that sell items I usually eat now. Bizarrely, I can no longer find refried beans at any of the stores (which used to be a fairly easy item to find) which bums me out. Mexican food is not popular here. Even the Taco Bell (the most McDonalized version of Mexican food in the world) near our house closed down after one year. I miss Mexican food (which is a staple in San Francisco). I made enchiladas a couple of weeks ago. Since I have not been able to find soft corn tortillas, I made them with flour tortillas (which are pretty easy to find here). Randomly, I can easily find Enchilada sauce at Unimart (grocery store here).

I made tacos the other night for some of the kids that were over at the house and it was cute how they had never eaten them before. The younger ones were not eating at first and it was because they were nervous about how to put them together. All loved the tacos though.

Random side note, I was slicing olives for a taco topping (I know, a little odd) and while I was slicing, I would occasionally eat an olive out of the can. The kids (ranging from elementary to college) were appalled. They had never seen black olives before. They were really grossed out. At that point, I realized had someone never eaten an olive before, it would look disgusting. It is a black slimy thing that comes in a can filled with briny water. I have been eating them since I was a little kid (we used to stick one on each finger and eat them off). More olives for me!

I still have no clue where my camera is. I also, disturbingly, lost my makeup bag. I do not want to buy makeup here (insanely expensive compared to US, even for cheap drugstore brand) and I do not relish having to buy it all in the states and shipping it here. I am hoping it will turn up.

8 comments:

Jonnifer said...

Kikahead, you must revisit this moment from our youth.

Hilarious about the olives, BTW. Good point about their black sliminess.

Jonnifer said...

Oh no, it's not working!

Try this: http://youtube.com/watch?v=mcMpJlYynBw

kikas_head said...

HA!! I had forgotten about that one!!

Jan D said...

Can you believe I read all your posts since 2006??
I was bored her in the office and accidentally stumbled on your blog and I was hooked. In fact, during my day off, I was telling my partner about what you wrote and how fabulous your new house is (and he looks at me like I'm crazy).
And the weirdest part is, I was actually looking forward to going back to work (gasp!) to continue where I left off (reading your blog). I have finally finished it and I'm wishing there was more.

Except for going to HK when I was 10, I have never again left the Philippines. I love it here despite all the imperfections.. I'm glad feel the same. :)

I'm no psycho. I'm a 25-year old chick who is bored at work and enjoys reading your writing. haha!

Watergirl said...

Have you tried to find refried beans at Healthy Options? They sometimes have a wider selection of varieties than a regular supermarket does. I've found low fat, low salt, low cholesterol, spicy, black bean refried. Try to go to their branch at Shangri-la Plaza.

Anonymous said...

Kikahead,
I don't know if you have the time (or inclincation), but I had bought a condo in Manila, and will be traveling there to outfit it for a vacation Rental...

I am trying to plan out my time, purchases and alike, but have never been there before (my wife grew up there, but left 20 years ago). I was wondering if I could have some private discussions with you regarding advice...

Thanks, John
jyelad@yahoo.com

kikas_head said...

Jan- aw, thank you! That is sweet!

Mila - I am sorry, I may have to start stalking you when you go shopping! You know where to find EVERYTHING and ANYTHING. I am completely impressed!!

John-just shot you an email!

Watergirl said...

Hahaha, i'm a major shopper... not! I just like to window shop and go through places, see what's on offer. Sometimes for normal stuff, sometimes for stuff that no one else wants! Feel free to email me if you want to ask for anything.