Willy-Nilly: Pasta in olive oil with "tuyo", spinach and tomatoes

Lately I have been busy studying for ... (drum roll please)... my MATH exam! Aargh! It will be in two weeks time and I am quite worried since I am not good at it. More so, teaching kids about strategies on how to develop their number sense. How can I even do that when I suck at Math myself?! I am doomed and I need a miracle! Anyways, as you can see, my post isn't really about math (pls. refer to the title :p). I am just ranting and whining because my scores on my quizzes were below average. Boo! I think my mind could only handle 50 math questions per day... so here I am taking a break from studying.

Back to my post, I am actually blogging about my newly-learned/invented-whatever-you-call-it dish. Last time, I have mentioned that I am trying to eat healthy. Yeah, you read it right. hehehe. So now, there is a conscious effort for me to stay away from unhealthy food. Even when I am busy juggling uni life and work, I still find time to cook my food than buy fast food. I think home-cooked meals are still the best. :)

Pasta in olive oil with "tuyo", spinach and tomatoes

The main ingredient of this pasta dish is"Tuyo", a salted dried fish in the Philippines. Oftentimes, it is cooked for breakfast paired with vinegar dip and fried rice. Popularly, "tuyo" is also known as a poor man's food because it is cheap. However, its yummy taste has transcended beyond its image to various social classes in the Philippines through the years.

While shopping at Best Friends, a store that sells Filipino and Asian products in Fortitude Valley,  a couple of weeks ago, I saw a bottled "tuyo" in corn oil. I have been craving for it since I arrived here in Australia so I decided to buy one and cook it with my pasta. So my super-imbentong-pasta-dish was conceived! lol

The ingredients are: 

Cooked pasta (any kind.. depends on your preference), minced garlic, olive oil, "tuyo", baby spinach, tomatoes, salt, pepper and parsley (optional).

Procedures:

Boil pasta in a saucepan and add oil and a bit of salt to enhance the taste of the pasta. The salt also makes the water to boil faster. Stir occasionally and cook until the pasta is al dente, cooked but slightly firm in the centre. Set aside cook pasta.

Preheat another pan. Add olive oil. Saute garlic, tomatoes and "tuyo" all together. Then add spinach. Put in the cook pasta and mix them well. Add salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle some parsley if you want.

And voila! There goes the "Pasta in olive oil with "tuyo", spinach and tomatoes". Happy eating!

Willy-Nilly: Drink Green

People nowadays are getting hooked into detox and juicing. As a matter of fact, it has now become a fad. I could see celebrities and ordinary people alike posting pictures on social media about their latest "juice experience". Well, it is good that more individuals are now conscious with taking care of their bodies. Who wants to get sick, anyway? I just hope that the intention behind it is for health reasons and not just going with the bandwagon. To me, drinking juice is not about "pakikiuso". Last month I had the biggest health scare of my life. Good thing no nasty cells were seen. But it got me paranoid and it was kind of a wake up call for me to have a balance life. Ever since that, I try to eat and drink healthy. So everyday I drink green juice made of a cup of water, a green apple, a kiwifruit, spinach, broccoli and a frozen banana (not in photo) before breakfast and dinner. It's my own little way of having more fruit and veggies intake. Next time I plan to add celery and beets. These two veggies have strong taste and I don't know if my juice will turn out yummy. But for health and wellness' sake, I am more than willing to try. 

Lookbook Sunday: White & Checkered

18.5.2014

Outfit of the day

Laid back Sunday

At KG library

Back story: I got frustrated with my math quiz scores so I decided to do a spur-of-the-moment photo shoot at the library .This was a one man photo shoot. Sorry for the bad angles. You know, it's crazy how I would set my cam on timer and run to strut a pose. Good thing it was just me at the far end area of the curriculum section. :p 

Selfies in my room

My closet has full length mirror so every time I dress up, I feel like it's inviting me to do selfies. lol Notice that I wasn't wearing black tights yet in the photos. These were taken before I went out. But the weather was a bit chilly outside so I went back to wear tights. 

What I wore:

white t-shirt and denim shorts (Supre)

purple checkered polo (Terranova)

orange bag (Kate Spade)

arm candies (L.A Citybeach)

gold rose watch (Michael Kors)

wedge shoes (Le Sport Sac)

Willy-Nilly: Life in Uni

Back in 2012, I decided to take a break and went back to the Philippines after my two-year teaching stint in Japan. Initially, I just wanted to have a breather and planned to take short make-up courses while I was still thinking whether I want to stay in Japan for good or build a family in my home country. After all, it was more fun and convenient in the Philippines as I would be staying with my family - my security blanket.

But then again, God has its way of giving people their second chances. You see, I have always dreamed of studying in Australia ever since my sister came here in 2010. I could still remember that when she was preparing for her studies, I joined her in her reviews and all. However, what was originally planned never happened because of a detour. I kind of pushed my dream aside in order to focus on the new chapter of my life seriously. Yet, a second chance to take on my Australian dream came unexpectedly. Out of nowhere, Mom asked me if I still wanted to study and eventually settle in Australia. Of course, I agreed. I knew I sort of disappointed her the first time so I was willing to prove myself again. And besides, I thought it would be best for me and my husband to settle down in Australia than in Japan for some personal reasons aside from its ground doesn't shake as frequently as Japan's (quite scary!). 

Anyway, it took me two months to prepare for everything - IELTS, docs and visa application. I chose early childhood education because I've always wanted to be a preschool teacher. I feel young and inspired when I am with little kids and I always want to make a difference in their lives. It is my ultimate dream to build my own preschool for under privilege kids and instill in them the importance of education and having someone to love and nurture them.

Fast forward, I went back to uni last year. The adjustment was quite hard. The last time I was in a formal school as a student was almost a decade ago. Moreover, the educational system in Australia is different from the Philippines. Back in college, the types of exams were a combination of identification, multiple choice and essays. ROTE teaching and learning it is. However, in uni, it's all about essays, research reports and journals. I was basically on my own figuring things out. Plus, I barely had friends in the first few months so adjusting to new culture was more of a struggle. For three months, my daily routine was home-uni-home. It was depressing. :(

Luckily, I found new friends before the first semester of my first year in uni ended. They are mostly Asians who are 9-10 years younger than me. Oh well... Lol. I also made friends with some exchange students who are from France and South Korea. Eventually, I enjoyed my life in uni despite living all by myself (technically...) and the pressure to do well in my assignments and exams. :)

This year I am now living with two girls I made friends with from last year. So far, so good even though there had been some difficulties after my first year in uni and during the first of half of 2014 both in my student and personal life. Despite that, I have no regrets because this has always been my dream and living here in Australia has widened my horizon. Setbacks may have slower down my pace, but I am certainly moving forward. Watch me. :)

flight to OZ via KE 

first visit to uni

one of the freebies from O-Week (O stands for Orientation.... :p) 

got my sked and student calendar

First taste of uni assignments...

this was me getting cray cray..oh essays...

journals, journals and more journals

the aftermath of the hell week - assessment week!

 My study buddies at KG Library during the first semester of my first year...

Oh okay... lol

serious?

Uni friends...

Filipino night with the gang. I cooked pork adobo and chicken caldereta for them

kiddos after first sem!

super kiddos! 

Farewell dinner for the "Frenchasian"

French night at Clement's

Chynn's birthday

studying for exams

with Tiffany after our last exam! yay!

Wayback Wednesday: After a two-year hiatus

Well, I guess you're wondering why I decided to pick up the pieces and blog again after a two-year hiatus. Honestly, I don't know. In the past two years, a lot of things happened. I've had a fair share of the happiest, the most exciting, saddest, loneliest, most pressured and unimaginable experiences. There were triumphs, failures, heartaches and detours. But as the saying goes, LIFE GOES ON. And I guess blogging is my way of appreciating life - what I had before; what I have now; and what will I have in the future. So, cheers!

Wayback Wednesday: Carmen sensei

Taking you back to my life as an assistant teacher in one of Joso City's junior high.

From 2010 - 2012

Undokai (Sports festival)

Music festival

a letter from my student...

Graduation day... March 9, 2011

a letter and a flower plant from the 3rd graders

send off gifts for me from the senseis.. Ms Henmi and Ms. Koide

the school building before the earthquake. circa 2010. It was badly damaged by the 3/11 earthquake so for my second year as a teacher, we moved to a temporary school while a new one was being built.

During my vacation in JP last January 2014, I went back to visit the school. And to my surprise, the new building has been constructed already. How time flies! I will be forever grateful for my experiences as an assistant teacher in Ishige Nishi Junior High.  It fueled my  passion for teaching and my desire to pursue an education degree here in Australia.