My brother: The Artist

I personally have been an avid fan of Art. As a kid I would join Art club, take summer art lessons at our local art school (Lim Guan) and have my mom buy countless metal tubes of watercolor to feed my painting appetite. I even took summer enrichment class in portraiture at  the Ateneo... well part of the reason I took the class was to meet boys since I was in an all girls school ;P, but I was in it mainly to learn to draw (yeh right!) Getting back--- because of my summer stints I can actually do anyone's portrait as long as I have a photo of them at hand. The reason why I'm sharing this with the whole world is because the love of Art that I have, is also shared by my younger brother who is 8 years my junior. Unlike me though, who had to take lessons and do countless drawings to get shapes right, he has an innate talent for it. At a very young age he could draw G.I. Joe characters and Transformer robots in detail and from memory. I was soooooo envious. Here I was, squeezing my Staedtler charcoal pencil as tight as I can to control my strokes and get a decent drawing, while my 6 year old bro was using his mongol 2's sketching away Lion-O and Mumrah as if they were right in front of him. So imagine my agony and frustration. Don't get me wrong though, it was not entirely envy... I was at awe. I'm so glad though that even after so many years despite his addiction to video and online gaming, his skill and talent have not faded. So, posting this article with my Bro Raymond's Art, after his quarter of a century birthday, makes me a proud sista! Enjoy!

All his art work are now done via drawing tablet (how high tech!) no more erasers and pencils needed!

Final fantasy character study.

As you can notice he is into Anime and Manga style drawings but is flexible enough to render modern graphics as you ca see below.

An invitation he made for my son's birthday.

His rendition of Cloud of Final Fantasy.

For more of Winshmo's Art work check: http://winshmo.deviantart.com/art/FFT-Mercenaries-Logo-Study-139496989?q=gallery%3Awinshmo&qo=24

Sweet Dreams are made of these: Red Velvet Cupcakes by FT!

Amongst the multitude of Red Velvet cupcakes, FT has decided to make her first from scratch

I was supposed to start my official diet day today, but since I already had my Phoa fix and was full to the brim, I decided that one cupcake making session won't hurt ;) So me, Bboy and Dada scurried around the grocery store to buy the ingredients. I didn't have the recipe yet but already had some idea of what was needed. So in went the cream cheese, butter, confectioners sugar, flour, baking soda and cocoa in the cart and off to the counter we went.

Red Velvet CupCakes - on rack (by thesepeasarehoolow.blogspot.com)

Take note this is the "fistime" I have ever baked a cupcake. I've eaten tons of them but never attempted to make one. I always found it easier to snatch out money from my purse than to manually beat a batter. Also, I thought it's been a week since my last blog and that I was craving for something sweet, so why not make a batch of warm red velvet cupcakes on a cold  and rainy Sunday afternoon... perfection!
So when we got home, I quickly consulted the "mother" of all "do-it-yourself-home Ec-I-love-being-a-house-wife" guru... Martha! A quick search in her website gave me the complete recipe for the cupcakes and my fahaha-avorite cream cheese frosting. Scrumtilidicious! Mwahhh!

 

Red Velvet batter with red coloring

As I quickly gathered the ingredients I realized I didn't have any butter milk, which is not a common commodity here in the tropics. I was quickly able to substitute this with milk and vinegar...thanks again to the power of the Net. Another option to the milk-vinegar recipe is to actually make butter milk from scratch by using whole cream and putting it in a well sealed bottle. You're supposed to shake it till lumps of butter appear (this might take a lot of muscle power and time since it's like  churning butter the century old way). The lumps can be made into butter by squeezing out the liquid and adding salt. Viola! The liquid left by the butter is called the butter milk which one can now use for the cup cake recipe. Ingenious!

Lucky me I did't have any electric mixer at home so making the cupcakes actually helped my diet regimen out by covering my cardio requirement for the day ;) It was no problem as well since I put my child labor force to good use ;)

 

After measuring, mixing, baking and sweating a bucket, the finished poduct came to life. I made sure to leave out the "red coloring" cause I remember my in-law almost getting a heart attack after thinking he had passed-out blood in the toilet after eating a batch filled with one (sorry for being too blunt and graphic but I had to share it). So it wasn't a very red velvet cup cake only a tinge but the taste was ohhh sooo tangy, sweet and fluffy! Anyhoo, originally the cupcake never contained any red coloring. It only turned red due to the reaction of unprocessed Dutch Cocoa and vinegar in the recipe, or so they say.

Now for the verdict. I can easily convince you about how it tasted by telling you guys that my son, who I clearly advised to only get one piece, went behind my back and sneaked in another. As I told him to put it back on the rack he stuffed the whole cake into his mouth... end of debate... it was YAMMMY! The cake though was not in the pretty side since the center rose like a muffin instead of being flat, which rendered the icing/frosting placement a bit tricky. Also, since humidity and room temp was not in the low 20's, the icing was a bit runny. Nothing a quick trip to the ref can fix. All-in-all it came out superbly! Nothing like a yummy prize after a hard day's baking ;)

So, if I can make a yummy scrumptious cup cake from scratch so can you...yes you! All you need is a good recipe, some good quality ingredients, a lot of muscle power and your well on your way to being the cup cake queen or king of your neighborhood. Enjoy!

For the complete Martha Stewart Red Velvet cupcake recipe please click on the image above

Mondieu! Ma première fois : Cirque du Soleil

My first time: Circus of the Sun

"In the abyss of darkness came a spirit in white hurling into the nothingness in pure grace." -MinaMad

 "Dans l'abîme de l'obscurité se fait dans un esprit blanche pré cipitant dans le néant dans la pure grâce."

 If given a chance to write a starting entry in Cirque de Soliel's official program this is how I will introduce the first ACT. I chose these words because they not only describe how the experience of Varekai starts out, but also because the words evoke how one feels while drenched in the world of Cirque du Soleil...magical, intriguing, dramatic and enthralling. I came into the tented-world "du Cirque" with out any idea about the troupes history, program or story line. I had expected a typical "Barnum and Baileys" type circus where there were clowns with red noses, acrobats, elephants, lions and lion tamers, but nothing prepared me for the world that Dominic Champagne sought to create when he directed and envisioned Varekai. 

Incroyable!

le grande chapiteau..."the BIG Top"

 

l'affiche : The shows official poster

According to Wiki, the word Varekai means "wherever" in the Romani language, and the show pays tribute to the Romani or "Gypsy" way of life which is nomadic in nature. Varekai premiered in Montreal, Canada, which is an arms lengths (exaggerating much! ;P) where Cirque du Soleil was established--Quebec (thus, the use of the French language in "mon blogue"). Since then, the show has been trotting around the globe, just like the rest of the troupe's 22 other programs, for the past 9 years.

Exceptionnel!

Le Promise: The betrothed.

 As an FTer to the world of Cirque du Soleil, I was coming in as a wide eyed kid ready to have the time of her life, and so I did. With the fantastic myriad of characters, costumes and climaxes (I mean climax in terms of story, plot and show progression... hmmm naughty naughty to those who thought differently ;P), the show was able to grip me and all those

le monde de Varekai: The world of Verakai

around me in a state of child-like awe and fascination. I clearly remember the 40ish year old guy beside me shrieking in excitement and amazement as aerial acrobats, limber dance routines and fantastic and quirky acts were being performed. What also made the show so breath taking were the eccentrically designed costumes by designer, Eiko Ishioka. They successfully drew your mind and senses closer to the fantasy world that "du Cirque" wanted you to experience and made the acts more jaw dropping.

Fantastique!

During the shows slippery surface routine.

I highly recommend everyone to experience the spectacle, whether you are 8 or 80, you will most definitely enjoy! 

Je le jure! 

If you're concerned about the price, don't be, as you need not be in the first row seat to get a good view of the show.

Georgian dance: they reminded me of twirling dervishes.

The "chapiteau" is quite intimate and being seated in the Php2,300 area (which is in the top most row) doesn't take the glitz and glitter away from the program nor will it make your nose bleed.

One of the performers posing in all is glorrryyy!

However, if you prefer to see the amazing anatomical structures, say the abs of some of the ... ahem... male acrobats (wink wink), then I suggest to get a seat in the first three rows ;) which is where I was fortunately  seated... Muuuwaaahahaha! (laughing dramatically while my pinky finger is placed strategically in the right corner of my lip). 

So what are you waiting for go on-line, buy the ticket, and be stupefied by the world that Cirque du Soleil has concocted just for you!

The cast in their amazing costumes.

 Vous voyez--See ya!

Click on the icon above to see details of Cirque du Soleil!

 Note: all pictures except for "le grande chapiteau-", which is MinaMad's own, is c/o Cirque du Soleil official website.

be gentle to my tummy ur my first cricket!

Today was my first brush with eating the famed deep fried cricket dish from Pampanga, thanks to birthday girl TriporTreats.blogspot.com!

 

Turns out this little bugger is called a MOLE CRICKET... Camaro (not the car!)/Kamaro to us Pinoys. According to Wiki, Mole crickets are omnivores, feeding on larvae, worms, roots, and grasses. So just imagine that as you feast on the yummy suckers (which is how they usually feed themselves--they burrow underground and suck the life out of their prey) you also feast on whatever delicious food repertoire they had for the day... delightful!

 

According to Tito Jet, our resident ka-Pampangan and extreme cuisine expert, Kamaro/Camaro/ Mole Crickets are harvested in the rice fields after a downpour as the little critters would come out of their holes to scavenge for food.  They then would patiently scoop up the buggers and immediately clean and deep-fry them twice. Then only will they be able to flavor the insects with chilli, vinegar, soy sauce, garlic and other spices to create their flavored and favored Kamaro.

Adobong Kamaro/Camaro

I love the dainty chopsticks I used while sampling them. It took the "icky" factor away from the whole gruesome situation... (overkill--gruesome! hahaha!) But seriously my first impression was to say "icky" because of the fact that it resembled a miniature alien while approaching my snapper and because the texture was somewhat odd. But when you get to register the flavor after the fear of choking-on-one-of-its-leg subsides, the little bugger tasted just like chicharon (pork rind) dipped in vinegar. It was crunchy, a bit juicy from the vinegar and soy sauce they used to cook it in. It also had an earthy grainy taste similar to eating the insides of escargot without the bitter after taste. So, all in all the experience was delightfully surprising but not to be repeated on a regular basis... only during an occasional dare. I can really picture though that the dish could be a good accompaniment to fried rice or as a topping for a hot and spicy soup or dish. Not my cup of tea when eaten alone.

Have you ever tried the little buggers? Apparently they are considered aphrodisiacs and special treats in countries such as Vietnam, Mexico, Bangkok etc. So if you've tried them, share your experience with me... may it be your firstime or your nth time. Till the next dare... see ya!

Hi I'm your resident Gryllotalpidae and FT has just sampled me up... Have you?!

 

My first barre 3 equipment

FTers! you might want to check out some equipments you can get online for a home version of the Barre 3 experience... 

My firstime @barre 3

The barre 3 Studio @ THE SPA FORT

oK to start my FT blog up today I decided to do something new and different... EXCERCISE... yes this is new and different for me because I am, unfortunately, used to laying down in my coach/ bed/ sofa and getting lost in the ocean they call the net, surfing from one site to another. EXERCISE...umm yesss.. I think I did. Going through the list of workout routines, fads, followings and cults, I decided to try BARRE 3 a the SPA Fort as a firstimer (FTer). Boy was I in for one hell of a work out ride.

Routines done in a ballet inspired bar @ barre 3

The perks of being a FTer at barre 3 is to have it for free (remember only when your an FTer), which I did to my delight as each session would lighten your pocket by Php700. There are, however packages that would bring this down to about Php500. A pretty good deal with the facilities, training equipment and somewhat individualized lessons you get during the 60 minute session. Now for the meatier review... how I did. The routine was a mix of yoga, Pilates, strength/core training... tension... a lot of sweat... an almost fainting episode (as I said, this site is for firstime experiences and this was the first time in about 5 years I tried to workout in a studio again!) and viola a 20 pound lighter me-how I wish! But seriously, doing the barre 3 regimen was very challenging. I was only 10 min into the warm up and I had beads of sweat dripping already. To think that we were doing small pulses and steps less than 10 reps each! I felt so pathetic! Midway through the lesson I felt a bit woozy maybe due to my breathing or because I was just caught off guard by my the increase in my heart rate--which is a rare occurrence these days, except for the times when I get to see an occasional hottie strolling along the mall ;) Anyhoo, back to business. Where were we...ah yes woozyness! So I decided to sit some routines out till I felt better and then continued on to doing the cool down routine which I really liked. During the whole time Mel, our instructor, would adjust our posture, remind us on how to engage our "core" and give us tips on how to challenge ourselves further with each move. All-in-all I say for an FTer barre 3 may prove to a quite demanding. Will I come back for more? Maybe...I need to first erase my embarrassing woozy/ fainting spell moment from my mind... maybe yes. I hear that there's a barre3 FOUNDATIONS class that has a slower pace than traditional barre3 classes but equally challenging (4:15pm every Wednesday @ The Fort Studio). I might look into this category instead... well, this is a firstime experience blog anyhoo so my next workout experience might just be something of a surprise, even for me... on to the next challenge then... see ya!

To see an intro on the workout @ barre3 press this link 

Bike painting... I take no credits for Linda Apple's master piece

The beautiful painting above is done by Linda Apple and can be seen by clicking on this Link