Back from Hiatus

Hello! I just realized that it's now the 1st of June, coincidentally the start of Winter season here in Australia, and I have not written anything at all the whole May. The whole month went in a blur. We didn't do anything out of ordinary so I had nothing interesting to write about.
 

We are nearing our fourth month here in Tamworth and there's still no word from my husband's employer if/when we can go back to Sydney. I didn't bring any winter clothes here because I thought we would only be here until the second week of June. Boy, was I mistaken! So we've decided to go back to Sydney next weekend to get clothes and supplies from the storage. I will also send the balikbayan box to the Phils. It's not full yet, I still need to buy a few things from Ikea. I can hardly wait! :)

Hunter Valley Getaway

Border Garden

We spent the Anzac long weekend in Hunter Valley. It was a last minute decision. So last minute that I was only able to book our accommodations the night before we left. So Friday night I was frantically searching for things to see and do for the weekend. We left Tamworth later than expected last Saturday because we overslept. We went straight to the Hunter Valley Gardens. There were heaps of gardens inside like Oriental Garden, Formal Garden, Border Garden. They even have a Sunken Garden. My favourite is the Storybook Garden. I swear you'll feel like a little kid again. :)

Oriental Garden

A Mad Tea Party @ Storybook Garden

Sunken Garden

It rained on Sunday so we decided to just stay in our villa and chillax. We left Hunter at around half past 9 on Monday and in 3 hours we were back in Tamworth. It was a very relaxing holiday. I enjoyed a lot even though it seems we didn't do anything. :)

Foodblog: Itlog na Maalat Follow Up

After soaking the eggs in the brine solution for 30 days (I know I may have overdone it!), I finally boiled all four of them yesterday. Here's what two of the eggs looked like with diced tomatoes:

The eggs were yummy but a tad too salty. Hehe. I'm going to make another batch later today. I'll probably soak this batch for just about 24 days. I've learned my lesson! ;)

BIG Things Australia - Muswellbrook, NSW and Pokolbin, NSW

Location: Nulkaba, Hunter Valley, NSW

I was able to book accommodations for us last night. It was so last minute, so not me. So here I am, writing this post from the villa where we are staying at. I love holidays! I’ll make a separate post about our holiday later.

On our way to Hunter Valley this morning, we stopped by the Muswellbrook Information Centre where a Big Thing is located. It is home to The Big Blue Heeler.

This afternoon, we saw another Big Thing at the Hunter Valley Gardens Village. We’re on a roll! Hehe. Here are photos of The Big Wine Bottle.

Our relaxing weekend is just beginning and I’m already invigorated. I love it! Later peeps. :)

Why Marry an Engineer?

Got this from my inbox. Somebody sent it to me ages ago. This is so FUNNY coz I AM MARRIED TO AN ENGINEER!

Why A Girl Should Marry An Engineer When Choosing A Mate
Compare These Other Professionals To Engineers

DOCTORS

Supposedly, all women are after a Doctor, so don't expect your relationship to last more than 5 years. Eventually, he'll run off with  some nurse from his office, or one of his young women patients that is pretending to be sick. He'll wait until you are stuck with a few kids to do this. This is not a problem with your Engineer husband. He had a hard enough time meeting you. It is unlikely he'll ever meet another woman in his profession.

LAWYER

Do you seriously expect an honest, trustingrelationship with someone who gets paid for lying? Once again, this is not a problem with your Engineer spouse. He doesn't have enough social skills to lie convincingly. An additional drawback to marrying a lawyer is when the divorce happens you will get nothing.

SALESMAN
 
See honesty segment under Lawyer. Plus, he will be traveling to trade shows, etc.where he will be in the company of other equally trustworthy individuals. Don't be surprised when you get the invitation to show up on the Ricki Lake show. The company that your Engineer husband works at will keep him in a cage, often called a cubicle, until he is ready to go home to you.

TEACHER

The only reason he entered this profession is so that he could be surrounded by newly post-pubescent girls who idolize him.He'll be in jail soon, and then you'll have to look for another man.

HAZARDOUS PROFESSIONS, I.E. FIREFIGHTER,CONSTRUCTION WORKER, ETC.

Your husband, if he is not dead by some accident, will likely be crippled with a back injury, etc. just about the time you are at your sexual peak. The only hazards that your Engineer husband will face is losing his eyesight by staring at the computer terminal for too long.
This hazard actually has some benefits. For one, he will not notice that you are getting older, since you will be a blur. He will remember you as when he first met you, because the memory will still be sharp.And If you think he is looking at another woman, and you ask "Honey, were you looking at her?", he'll honestly be able to say that he didn't even see her.

TOP TEN REASONS TO DATE AN ENGINEER

10. The world does revolve around us... we chose the coordinate system.

9. No "couple" enjoys a better "moment".
 
8. We know how to handle stress and strain in a relationship.

7. We have significant figures.

6. We have taken a course on the motion of rigid bodies.

5. Projectile motion... need we say more?

4. Engineers do it according to specification.

3. According to Newton, if two bodies interact, their forces are equal and opposite.

2. We know it's not the length of the vector that counts, but how you apply the force.

1. We know the Right Hand Rule.

 Need we say more ...

Updates

Happy Earth Day! :)

It's been a while since I posted anything. Here are some things that happened/are happening:

~ I've finished reading books 3 and 4 of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, The Battle of the Labyrinth and The Last Olympian. Although there were some dragging parts, in all of the books, all in all, the series was an enjoyable read. Somehow, I got the feeling that there will be more books added to the series. I hope so.

~ There are  some addition to my balikbayan box: Brita Water Filter System. I bought a jug and a box of 6 Filter Cartridges. The water bottle is a freebie. Brita is also sold in Manila, I just don't know if it's cheaper here. Oh well, it doesn't matter. I already bought it for them. The box is coming along pretty well. Though I can't send it yet. I have to wait til we get back to Sydney.

~ Another Blackberry was delivered this morning because we weren't satisfied with the first  phone delivered last week. The screen looks like it might fall off. So my husband rang and ask for a replacement. Hopefully this one's ok so he can finally have it activated. I can't wait to pay with it!

~ Another long weekend is coming up, the Anzac long weekend in commemoration of Anzac Day on April 25th. Here's what I found in wikipedia:

Anzac Day is a national day of remembrance in Australia and New Zealand, and is commemorated by both countries on 25 April every year to honour members of the Australian and New Zealand Army  Corps (ANZAC) who fought at Gallipoli in Turkey during World War I. It now more broadly commemorates all those who died and served in military operations for their countries. Anzac Day is also observed in the Cook Islands, Niue, Samoa and Tonga.

Surprise, surprise. I still don't have anything planned. I'm madly searching the net right now for places we could go to. It's already Thursday. I hope I could come up with something or else we're staying in for three days.

That's all for now. Ciao!

Delivered

The parcel that I was talking about in my last post was actually delivered, as it said in Australia Post’s tracking system, to our neighbour’s house, NOT ours. The said neighbour knocked on our door yesterday and gave me the parcel. I was annoyed because he had already opened the package. He said he thought it was his because he ordered something from eBay. I wanted to point out to him that the parcel had my name on it but decided against it. No point in arguing with him. At least he returned the parcel to me. I was also annoyed with AusPost for delivering the parcel to the wrong address. The parcel even said ‘signature required upon delivery’. Whose signature did they get? Oh well, at least my parcel is here now, safe and sound.

It’s a cookset for my mum which I’m actually going to send to the Philippines in June. I’m still filling the (balikbayan) box. We’ve been sending a box full of goodies to our families in the Philippines every six months since we’ve arrived here. It’s fun shopping for them. The cool thing is they also shop for me! If I want something in Manila I just call or SMS them and they try and get it for me.

I received another parcel this morning.

My husband ordered a BlackBerry over the phone on Tuesday night. He was told to expect the delivery by Thursday or Friday so I was surprised when the parcel was delivered this morning. Now I’m jealous. I want a BlackBerry, too! Haha. I still have seven months left in my current contract before I get to have a new phone. Bummer! I’ll just ‘borrow’ DH’s BlackBerry sometimes. Or should I just swap my iPhone for his BlackBerry? I’m just not sure if he’ll agree. :)