christmas eve 2009-34 lorna rae blvd.

this year x'mas eve gathering was held at 34 lorna rae blvd.. there were some who missed the occassion due to their scheduled flights going home to the philippines. everybody had a wonderful time and stayed over for the traditional "filipino breakfast" christmas day. the pictures above said it all..

christmas decoration 2009

we are ahead in decorating the house this year. as soon as the christmas tree were up, nov. 15, the commander-in-chief aka. "neck" started her christmas appettite for decorating. here are the pictures of the decoration she did.

lobster lunch

last sunday, nov. 1, 2009, we celebrated the "neck" and francis birthday at our place with lobster lunch. it was tim who ordered six three pounder lobster and a one pounder for seyla.

they were huge. i think i will have to pass next time if it happens again. it was so rich that i felt that my blood pressure rised so much that fast. it was a different experience. having one big lobster on your plate, deciding where to start and at the same time maintaining your sanity.

again, happy b-day to the commander in chief and francis.

THANKSGIVING-OCTOBER 12, 2009

every thanksgiving i always see to it that it is celebrated in my house. this is the time that we take our yearly family pictures which will cover our christmas cards.

this year was a lit bit different. i invited the whole barrientos clan in my place with mom and dad as the focus of our picture taking.

the weather was bit a cold. we ended taking pictures inside of my place instead. everybody had a good time as always.

there was a new "paparazzi" who took care of taking pictures with her new loaded nikon camera.

i guess the next stop will be traditional "christmas eve" gathering.

new england/canada cruise-sept.5-12,2009

as i stated on my previous blog, the "neck" and i went for week new england/canada cruise last sept.5-12. peggy's cove, halifax, nova scotia and the bay of fundy, st john, new brunswick are the two places that i want to go back if ever i will be given a chance.

if ever that day will happen, in nova scotia, i wil try and visit sidney and cape breton.

the cruise is highly recommended if you want to see the east coast of usa and canada. when we were planning this trip i was a little bit hesitant. my expectation was not so high. now, i don't regret taking this trip. it opened my eyes that in canada, we have a lot of places to see and explore.

CRUISE FOOD

the commander-in-chief and i went for new england/canada cruise last sept.5-12.

i haven't been to the atlantic side of canada that's why i chose this trip.

one of the things that i enjoyed in a cruise, there is always a night where the main course is LOBSTERS.

lobsters and grilled jumbo shrimps were served during our 5th night sit down dinner. since our dinner doesn't start till 8pm, i went to the buffet part of the ship around 5:30pm and got myself a lobster start. i killed two lobsters. i didn't tell the commander-in-chief until we finished our dinner on that night.

DAD'S 91st b-day

today is my dad's 91st b-day. with that age, mapalad kung ating mararating ang ganoong gulang.

dad used to smoke but quit when he knows that there is nothing to gain. he drinks very very seldom. i think those are some of the ingredients of having a longer life.

i think dad got involved to ballroom dancing when he was in early 50's. that was carried when he arrived here in canada in 1980. alam mong nasa twilight na siya ng kanyang buhay sa madaling kapaguran pagsumasayaw. hindi katulad ng dati na lahat ng itugtog ng dj ay halos walang patid na pinauusok ang tabla sa sayawan.

happy b-day dad. hoping you'll have more b-days to come.

zoe took the "fall"

it was in february when the first death in the family arrived. then death comes every two months after that. there is a saying that " death in the family comes in three's". it is just like a "curse". there is a "supertitious belief and saying" from the elders back home, in order to stop the "spell" , a pet has to pay the "dues" to discontinue the trend.

thats what happened to zoe, she took the "fall".

there was a special mass celebrated by father max at my back yard last thursday, july 2, for the soul of my late brother dick. everybody were there. both cisco and zoe were in full motion, enjoying the presence of my relatives.

the next day, cisco could hardly use his hind left leg. so the "commander-in-chief" brought the big guy to the vet. with cisco's age, we thought that he is going downhill.

saturday night, i took zoe for our usual walk. we did not took cisco with us because of his condition. everything seems to be fine, she pooed 3x. after the walk, zoe was in so much pain.. she could hardly lie down.

sunday, the "commander-in-chief" took zoe to cisco's vet and was given a shot for pain and were advised to see a surgeon for her spinal. so monday am., the "boss" brought zoe to her own vet and was given prescriptions, a steroid for the inflammation and pills for the pain. she was advised to come after a week to see if there is a development.

she never reached that monday, she died in peace last thursday morning, july 9, 2009.

sudden goodbye...

ang puso ko ay umiiyak sa matinding kalungkutan. kakaibang damdamin ang aking nadama. para akong nawalan ng isa sa mga minamahal ko sa buhay. sa anim na taon naming pagsasama, nagdulot siya ng kaligayahan sa aming tahanan at kay seyla.

sa kabila ng aking kalungkutan, i'm still thankful that God took her early so that she will not suffer so much pain. i'm still thankful and guilt free that she died in peace and we don't have to put her to "sleep". i'm still thankful that we were able to give her the best 6 years of her life and never stop loving her until her last day on this earth.

zoe "my tangs", hahanap hanapin kita.

GOODBYE TENGA (big ear)

this picture was taken when i was in the philippines december 2007. his health was up and down, high and low. Last sunday, june 7, 2009, he finally said his final goodbye after years of
sickness.

my unforgetable memories of my late brother dick was the year when they were able to pay my mom and dad for a visit and at the same time, celebrated my dad and mom"s 65th wedding anniversary.

during their short stay here in toronto, we really bonded as siblings.

dick married when he was only 17 years old. i was on my first year in high school when he had his first son. we never really jelled as a brother because he has his family to provide and that time i was up and coming.

when they came over for a visit, i took him and kuya boy to ottawa, montreal and quebec tour. they enjoyed that tour so well and even bragged their experiences when they went back to the philippines. actually, they don't like the idea of going to that tour. they rather keep the money for themselves rather than spending it to the tour. i was the only one who pushed it so hard for them to see the other places in canada. going back, they really acknowledged that without my persistant, they would not see anything except toronto.

everytime i talked to him over the phone to see how he is doing, he always give his best regards to my family and he would individually mentioned every name up to "seyla". we always go back to the days when they were here and very proud of the experiences.

he was finally put to rest last saturday, june 13.

may the Lord's perpetual light shine upon him and may he rest in peace.

lakers/magic match up

just few hours ago, LJ and the cavaliers bowed out to orlando magic.

the nba final will be between the lakers and the magic. i'm sorry to inform the three guys in our basketball pool that 'MAGIC WOK" is again will be doing business for us. the two teams who are going to the finals are the teams that i selected at the draft. so i don't really care who will win. the most important thing is "DEEP FRIED SQUID" will start as an appetizer.

i think this time, i will be having a lobster tail for a change. hopefully it will be soon!!!!

to the three guys, better luck next year.

hahanap hanapin ka namin

itong nakaraang miyerkules, sa takdang oras ng ikalabindalawa ng tanghali, nawala sa aming buhay ang isa sa mga "generation" na magpapatuloy ng 'legacy' ng "barrientos". sa hindi inaasahan ng pagkakataon, lahat ay nabigla sa kanyang pagkawala. napakasakit at napakalungkot ang mga araw na nagdadaan. nagkakaroon ng pangamba kung bakit sa ganoong paraan humantong ang buhay na napaaga pa. may mga buhay na ayaw magtapos kahit na ano mang pagdudusa ang sinasapit sa kadahilang maikli ang panahon dito sa lupa.

katulad na rin ng aking sinulat sa isa mga "blog" ko, na mayroon kadahilanang kung bakit nangyayari sa buhay ng tao ang mga bagay bagay na hindi mo inaasahan sa kasalukuyan. maaring hindi maibigay ang kasagutan sa ngayon ngunit darating ang araw na inaasam asam mong kasagutan ay darating na hindi sa oras na iyong inaasahan.

sa kasalukuyan, hindi lang ang ama at ina ang nakakaranas ng kadiliman ganuon din ang mga kamag-anak na nakapaligid sa kanila. dumadaloy ang luha sa kabigatan ng puso sa tinding kalungkutan.

dito napatunayan na ang pagmamahalan ng isat isa ng kamag-anakan ay napakalakas lalong lalo na sa pagkakataon na ito. nagsasamasama at nagiging isa na palipasin ang bagyong dumadaan.

kahit na hindi namin gusto ang mga nangyari, yuko ang aming ulo at tatanggapin ng bukas sa aming damdamin dahil yuon ang kagustuhan mo. hahanap hanapin ka namin sa mga araw pang darating.

sa iyong pagyao, sana'y maging maliwanag at mapayapa ang daan patungo sa kalangitan. at sa oras ng huling hininga namin dito sa lupa, kami'y umaasa na ikaw ang sasalubong sa amin sa gintong pinto ng walang hanggang kaligayahan.

NBA SEASON

the nba season will be over again in the next few weeks. as always timmy, francis, john and myself will be picking teams who we think will be the nba champ for this year.

there will only be one champ and the guy who pick up that team will be treated to a nice dinner to a place of his choice.

last year, my boston celtics were the champ so i was treated finally last sunday where the best deep fried squid is available, MAGIC WOK.

we, me and the "neck". were the first one at the restaurant. as soon as i got seated, i ordered a deep fried squid as for our appetizer. as soon as the three financial expiditers came in, we ordered a total of 5 plates of deep fried squid. timmy killed half of the 5 plates. he ate them as if it is "rice".

it was so nice to be treated. i wish my luck continues and be able to select the right team again this time.

the "financial expiditers" are thinking of changing the format regarding selecting a team. it will be something to look forward to.

on the sad note, after the ninth day devotion of "bayaw", ate bernic's best friend, ate marina, came over from seattle, washington to pay her a visit. i was able to see them, she and her husband-kuya cesar, after 40 years.

early yesterday, march 15, they got involved in a head on collision. both of them died. they were coming home for a night out when a young lady crossed their pathway. the young lady didn't make it either. a very tragic accident.

i truly believe that when the time has come for you to leave this world no matter where you are... when your time is up.....is time to go.

you will be proud

the other day, i was reading a filipino newspaper "balita", i came across an article about two filam girls from california, they called themselves "rin on the rox". they started singing about six months ago inside their washroom. ellen degeneres was able to discover them guys thru the you tube.

i was amazed and i like to share it to all my fellow bloggers, in case they haven't heard about these two ladies.

check out also charice pempengko and arnel pineda. i think you will be proud.

i don't know about you but myself, i like to sing when i'm taking a shower. the sound is so different, especially when i'm belting out "ip the fictures faints". maybe francis should take a note of this, so he could tape his voice with his rendition of "o canada".

speaking of singing, the other day, the "neck" was singing her favorite song. i told her that her voice is good for radio and tv. she came up to me and said "really"? and i said yes, because if it is on the radio or tv i could always shut down the radio or tv anytime i want to.

last february 17, bayaw "jessie" was finally put to rest in resthaven and his ninth day devotion ended last friday, february 20. i'm now in the midst of changing my wish regarding my ashes when time comes.

happy b-day christy

happy b-day to christy tomorrow february 5,

hope you'll have many more b-days to come.

thanks a million for keeping and sheltering grandma when it was really needed.

HAPPY B-DAY PURITY MAKUNATI

it was mom's 88th b-day yesterday. she was born feb. 3, 1920. i know, she is suppose to be 89. according to people who practice chinese supertitious belief, when the sun starts to set on you, hindi mo raw gagamitin ang may 9 sa b-day mo. kaya, si mom is either 88 or 90 years old. i chose the former because mas bata.

pagakatapos ng ilang buwan away from their apartment due to the event that no one suspected, they are both back now to their own nest. they are together again.

i would like to thank those people who one way or another extended their help in time of crisis. i really don't have to mention their name for they know who they are. i would just like to extend a special thanks to christy for having and taking grandma under her wings when things were not that smooth. to mama nitz, for coordinating things , sheltering and looking grandpa's welfare while their place were under siege.

minsan, nakapag-iisip ka kung bakit may ganoong nangyayari. isang kasagutan lang ang nakalaan sa mga doubt at bagay na bagay na kung bakit nangyari. the always answer to such question is "THINGS HAPPEN FOR A REASON".

X'MAS DECORATION 2008

in a week time our x'mas decoration will be finally set aside for another year. i would like to share with you what the commander-in-chief did this year. it was different from the previous years.

only in "pinas"

a very close friend went home in "pinas"to celebrate x'mas and attend his brother 60th b-day. i asked him to mail letters to my brothers and friends. since it is x'mas, i enclosed monetary gift plus our x'mas family photo greeting card.

as soon as he arrived, instead using the local postal system, he sent it thru DHL. in "pinas", it is a given fact that any letters that comes from abroad if it looks thick and was mailed thru the post office, the chances are, the letter will not reach the rightful recipient.

since my friend knows this situation, he paid extra and used DHL. he was disappointed when he found out that out of the four letters that he sent out, two of the letters were disturbed. one never receive the monetary gift that i enclosed and the other never got the x'mas photo greeting card.

when you send a package or letter anywhere in north america thru any courier, you are well assured that the rightful recipient will receive whatever is the content of the package or letter. in "pinas", it is the other way around. it is sad but it is a reality.

last x'mas day early morning, coming from tim's house, i found a gift left at our front door and it was addressed personally to me. inside the box, i found a TOWEL. there was no name of the giver. i'm pressuming that it came from one of those practical joker friend of mine.

since the TOWEL was not the big enough to be a bath towel and not small enough to be considered as a face cloth towel, i decided that seyla could use it for her swimming class.

my basketball buddy ely, got the same gift as well from our unknown friend.

another year has passed. maging masagana sana ang ating bagong taon. nadagdagan na naman ang age natin and it meant that my generation is slowly turning into "dapit hapon". how time flies.