idioXINEcrasies

How to help Typhoon Ondoy victims

Xine — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 08:50:57 +0000

Typhoon Ondoy created a lot of damage to property and lives of our fellow Filipinos. I found information on how we could help the typhoon victims from the Inquirer website. You may also coordinate with your local government and parishes for more information. Aside from the tangible items that we can give, let us also offer prayers for the victims. Let us also pray for ourselves that that we may see this disaster as a wake-up call, so we can change our ways and take better care of our environment. Filipinos may be resilient against tragedies like this and even tend to forget. It will be best if can constantly remind each other about the ways and means that we can protect nature. By protecting our environment, we are also protecting ourselves.

Toy Pusher, my new playground

Xine — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 18:51:03 +0000

Finally, my new website, Toypusher.com is up. A place for toy collectors and enthusiasts, Toy Pusher will feature the coolest toys that you’ll absolutely love!

I’d like to hear from you, please post your comments on the site and drop me a line at hello@toypusher.com.

Toy Pusher is coming

Xine — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 02:35:55 +0000

Toy Pusher will be feeding your toy addiction very soon! You’ll see lots of figures, vinyl, plush and much much more! Watch out for prizes and giveaways too. You may also send an email to hello@toypusher.com for more details or follow me on twitter for updates.

Stop Motion

Xine — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 01:32:44 +0000

Sugoi ne?

It’s really cool what the artist did with a bunch of Post-Its. I wonder if I can also make something like this? We recently got our Nikon D60 from Kim Lato of kimstore.multiply.com, (thanks Kim for giving us a good deal!) and it has a feature to create stop motion animation. I guess we’ll start with something less complicated than this. Maybe Ali and I can make an experiment with our Revoltechs, Figmas and vinyl toys soon. ^_^

Tokidoki for Hello Kitty Cactus Kitten Plush 8″

Xine — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 12:43:26 +0000

It’s tokidoki and Hello Kitty! It’s kawaii times two! I love the pink heart over crossbones zipper and her little red bow with a skull on it. And that yellow chili friend that she’s holding just adds to the cuteness.

This doll was I think among the earlier plushies from the collaboration of artists Simone Legno and Hiroko Yamaguchi. It’s just an overload of cute!

There are a lot more tokidoki x Hello Kitty items like bags, charms, vinyl figures and I hope I could get my hands on them. I like! I like! I like! Haha! ^_^

Toycon 2009 (8th Philippine Toy Convention, SM Megatrade Hall)

Xine — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 10:42:18 +0000

Our stash: Tokidoki x Hello Kitty cactus kitten plush, Fraulein Revoltech Haruhi Suzumiya and a NEWS (Concert Tour Pacific 2007-2008) DVD. Yup that’s what we got yesterday at the 8th Toy Convention at SM Megatrade hall. We went there around noon, Megatrade hall was really crowded, ventilation was really poor and I think there was even a scare of the A(H1N1) virus (some people there wear face masks) but that didn’t stop us to take pictures and shop for toys that we like. I was looking for a nice Saber doll but I didn’t find one, Ali was hoping to buy a Revoltech Pocco, we actually saw one but he hasn’t decided yet if he’s really going to get it. When we came back it was already sold so he settled for a Revoltech Haruhi instead.

The event was fun, there were a lot of participating shops and you can even haggle for the prices of the items, there’s also a cosplay competition, toy photography contest, raffles and games. I just hope that next year they’ll get a bigger, nicer venue. Oh and I hope to get one of those ball-jointed dolls, kawaii!

Meet Mozzarella, my tokidoki vinyl toy

Xine — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 01:27:28 +0000

I so love my new tokidoki vinyl toy. Her name’s Mozzarella. Isn’t she adorable?

Mozzarella leads the Moofia. The Moofia was assembled to extort milk from the lunchboxes of schoolyard bullies. Mozzarella is loving and kind to good kids but ruthless and feared by those who harass the innocent. By taking the milk from the bad and giving it to the good, the Moofia know the good will grow up strong and healthy to protect themselves. Milk is power. Milk is protection. (from Mozzarella’s milk carton)

Tokidoki means “sometimes” in Japanese. Italian illustrator Simone Legno is the artist behind the very successful tokidoki brand. He just loves Japan, everything from the ultra modern happy face of Shibuya to the serious magic silence of Kyoto. He said he chose “sometimes” because everyone waits for moments that change one’s destiny.

tokidoki Mimobot is love

Xine — Sat, 30 May 2009 02:18:57 +0000

Ali just got me Pink Meletta by tokidoki. This MIMOBOT Designer USB Flash Drive by Simone Legno is super, super cute! Thanks sweetie! ♥

Ti-rug-misu

Xine — Mon, 04 May 2009 02:49:46 +0000

Soaked. Brown. Rug.

That’s how my first attempt to make tiramisu turned out. Yes, it looked that bad, but it tasted really good! Haha. Ali brought some lady fingers last Saturday and I confidently told him that I’ll make tiramisu. Equally excited as I was, he accompanied me to the supermarket the next day to buy my ingredients.

Eggs, check. Sugar, check. Mascarpone cheese, check. Heavy whipping cream, check. Semi-sweet chocolate, check. I made some substitution the coffee liqueur though, I used instant coffee and I skipped the chocolate powder for dusting. I bought Meiji dark chocolate for the shavings.

I based my tiramisu on a recipe I found here. I just listed the down the ingredients and scribbled the procedure on how to cook it. First I split the ingredients in half since I only have a small pan. Then I cooked the yolks as instructed, Ali even helped me with it since we’re simultaneously trying to make a kitchen gadget work so I can whip up the heavy cream. Since my handwriting was a bit messed up and I’m to lazy to go online again and check the recipe, I made a mistake by cooking the marscapone and another mistake by whipping the cream too darn hard. My cream filling came out flat! (-_-;) I tried to save it by chilling it a bit, crossing my fingers that it will have some texture or something. It didn’t. I continued to arrange my ladyfingers-cream(liquid)-ladyfingers-cream(liquid) layers. I pity the ladyfingers, they look like they’re drowning and screaming for help!

Good thing we also bought Milano mint cookies, that’s what we ate since I told Ali that the tiramisu still needs some time to set. Haha.

After breakfast this morning, I ask Ali if he wants to try the tiramisu. I placed it in a bowl. And we used a spoon to eat it. Get the picture? Haha. Ali liked it though. He said it tasted good, it just doesn’t look pretty. He remembered watching “The Next Iron Chef” and one judge there said something about a dish which tasted like wet tissue. Before he could finish, I told him it doesn’t taste like wet tissue, but it sure looked like a soaked rug. He agreed and we both laughed. I’m so happy that he didn’t get mad or anything because the mascarpone is a bit expensive and I messed up the tiramisu. At least it’s still edible and even quite tasty. Modesty aside, it’s even tastier than the regular tiramisus that I’ve tried (maybe they scrimped on the mascarpone). Oh well, maybe next time I’ll be able to nail it. Ja ne!

Green Pan

Xine — Sun, 03 May 2009 12:21:08 +0000

Here’s a conversation between Ali and me last Friday. He’s in Puerto Galera. I have work since my company doesn’t observe Philippine holidays. My parents offered to drive me to work. I told them it’s still early so they dropped me off at Podium instead. It’s just a few steps away from my office.

X: Hi sweetie, I went to Living Well a while ago and I found Gu-rin Pan. (I like saying gu-rin instead of green. Haha.) I got so excited and bought one. *laughing*
A: What? Green Pan?
X: Yup! (Ali’s thinking it’s really an expensive pan. I thought so too, at first)
A: And you bought one?
X: Yup yup.
A: How much?
X: Oh, it’s not too expensive… are you angry? *suppressing my laughter now*
A: No, but how much? 10,000? 5,000?
X: No, lower.
A: 4,999?
X: Haha. Lower. 4,998.
A: For a pan?
X: You are mad… I have nothing else to do so I got a few stuff. I also bought some ramekins and other utensils and…
A: I’m not mad but enough shopping for now, you’ll be late for work, ok?
X: Okay.

I was laughing while I was on my way to the office. The pan didn’t cost me 4,998. It’s less than 2,000 Pesos. I would think twice of buying a small pan that costs more than 2,000. Haha. But I think it’s a nice pan. According to the Green Pan website,

GreenPan™ is a Belgian cookware manufacturer which is the first to launch PTFE free non-stick cookware. Our products have truly revolutionized the entire cookware market. Each of our products makes a serious commitment towards your health, your convenience and the environment. High-end materials and the latest state-of-the-art technology make it possible to create unique pieces. Enjoy the new dimension and expand your cooking skills with GreenPan™

There are many negative reviews about it though, but most of those reviews are for the Green Pan from HSN. Not sure if it’s the same thing. But I guess I’m satisfied with my gu-rin pan. I cooked garlic shrimps with lemon butter sauce and Ali loved it. He’s also happy to find out that the pan is not 4,998. Haha. Right now, I’m thinking of getting another one.