Chasen Dreams

 Life is indeed full of surprises.  Never in my wildest dreams did I ever imagine that I would live in Australia.   We considered moving to Singapore in 2018.  The plan was to work there for five years, save money and go back to the Philippines and live happily ever after. lol.   However, for some reasons, it did not materialize. Then last quarter of 2019, my husband had an opportunity to be transferred to their Sydney branch/headquarter.   When asked about my thoughts about it, my answer was a resounding yes.  I was so excited.  I googled everything about Australia.  However, when we started to look at the figures (possible income of a software engineer and the cost of living), we had second thoughts.  Modesty aside, I believe we were doing well back in the Philippines.  We had a comfortable life there.  When I say comfortable, it means I could afford a McDo meal whenever I want.  My husband could afford to drink Starbucks coffee every day, that's his yardstick  of success. lol. 

In 2019, my husband and I  bought  a foreclosed condo unit through housing loan.   When I viewed the unit, I saw a rough diamond waiting to be polished.  Although the unit was bare finished,  I knew that it would be a  good investment considering its cost  and location.   Its cost was way below its market value, and it is located along EDSA connecting MRT station.   It would be a good rental property.  As stated, the 37 sqm unit was bare finished. There was no flooring, paint,  ceiling, partition etc.   So, we had to hire a contractor to renovate it.     We engaged the services of  Triple R Builders, the contractor of our old condo unit. We did not consider other contractors because  we already knew the work of Triple R and they already gained our trust.  We did not hire an interior designer to lessen the cost.         We just  showed our peg to the contractor  and let them execute it.  In hindsight, it would have been less stressful if we  hired one.  The renovation started on Nov

 Hi! I was MIA last year.     I won't use the usual excuse this time.  I was not busy. In fact, I was and still am unemployed.  I did not lose my job though.  I resigned from work and   moved to Sydney last year.    The reason why  I did not write when I had  all the resources to write is   because I did not feel like writing.  The big move in the midst of the pandemic drained me emotionally and mentally.  That's the reason why I chose REBUILD as my one word for the year 2021. The pandemic is not yet over and no one knows when it will  be over.  However, we can't just sit, do nothing and wait for the "old normal" just like what I did in 2020.   The pandemic came like a thief in the night, leaving me with no chance of beating it.  Like all of us, I was caught off guard.  I did not know what to do.  So I paused and put all my plans on hold.  I simply survived while telling myself that it will be over soon.  However, no matter how hard I tried to give myself a pep ta

Last weekend, we had a spur-of-the-moment staycation.   It was my husband’s idea because we needed to relax.   We had been very tired and anxious for the past days.   He also thought that Cean might have gotten her skin allergy from our home.   Baka daw allergic sa bahay namin.   My husband is OA like that.  lol I rushed Cean to the ER last week because of skin allergy.       Until now, I still don’t know the culprit because I did not introduce anything new to her.   As prescribed by the doctor, I eliminated chicken, chocolate, egg and nuts from her diet.    Chicken na nga lang kinakain eh, inalis pa.   lol.   But, she’s okay now.      And I’m okay now.   I was able to repay my sleep debt.   Thanks to our staycation.   We stayed at Prime Hotel. It’s located at Sgt. Esguerra, Bgy. South Triangle,   Quezon City.   Actually, it’s just a few blocks away from our home.    I did not want to   travel far and endure the   heavy traffic in Edsa.  I chose it because it's relatively

As you may have noticed, I changed my blog name from   blahblahblogchef to Chasen Dreams (Chasing Dreams) though the url is still the same.   Why did I name it blahblahblogchef? What was I thinking?Lol. It’s supposed to be a food blog of a chef wannabe but then it evolved   into a whatever-enters-my-mind blog.   However, my love for food and cooking has not changed.   I am still passionate about preparing food for my family.   I still dream to cook not just for my family… to make money from my passion.   When I retire,   I will  open  a cafeteria   na medyo konti lang ang tao para hindi ako mapagod.   Besides, I will retire to pursue my passion not to get tired. Lol.   Now, I’m gonna share the recipe of my future bestseller.  It’s actually the recipe of my friend. I just tweaked it to match my taste. Ingredients: ½ kg                       Pasta (I used Penne) 1 can                      Luncheon Meat (I used Delimondo) 1 420g                    C

I did not blog for the year 2018. I was busy offline.  And I think I lost my blogging mojo but I’m in the process of getting it back (What?! Feeling consistent magblog).    Anyways, I am still alive, and I would want to believe that 2018 was good to me.   Please allow me to summarize my 2018 in one blog post. FAMILY In  the second quarter of the year, my family and I were confronted with a dilemma.  It was whether or not  we let our mother undergo an operation.   Both options have repercussions.    It was such a difficult decision to make but  we chose to deal with the problem head-on.  Although I was soooo scared, inilaban namin.  Thank God, we made the right choice.  Mom’s surgery  went well and there were no complications whatsoever.      Indeed, our God is such a good God.  He never abandoned us.  He   sent the best persons to assist and help us aka the doctors, friends and relatives.   We are beyond grateful. ON MOMMYHOOD Cean is already 4 years old, very cute and