My Younger Sister's Confession

Yesterday, I told Jasmine about one of her high-school batch mates who recently tied the knot. She said she knows. She doesn't have Facebook to know about what's going on with her friends but somebody at home must have shared the news to her. I told her after some time that I saw a post in Facebook that she's pregnant so that must have been the reason for the quick wedding. 

Then she asked if I was envious. I said yes, because I'm already 28! Haha. And that's when she suddenly said she is pregnant, too. Seven weeks. I didn't believe her. I even said this is too early for April fools. :D Believing that she was joking, I told her that if it's a baby boy then it's fine. When she said she was serious, I still didn't believe her until she sent me a photo of her pregnancy test and a doctor's appointment. I got emotional. I couldn't help but cry. I am so happy for her, really happy. She wanted to break the news on my vacation this April but I think she had the courage to tell me when I mentioned about her friend. I knew she was a little afraid of telling me because I've always told her I should marry and have a baby first since I am the older one. But now, it doesn't really matter. I love my baby sister and I'm happy when she is. 

Everyone at home knows except for our father. She broke the news two weeks ago and since then she haven't seen him. She wanted to tell him the news, personally. Jay-r and Susay are happy. They wanted to have their own, too. :) My Auntie Tess and Ate Sheila are the most excited and her boyfriend who just left for Muscat is the happiest when she told him. She's expecting her baby in 6th of October, just a day after our youngest sister's birthday. 

When asked, my younger sister said she doesn't have any plans in getting married, yet and she wanted me to walk in the aisle first. Haha. She could marry first or after me, but whatever God's plans are for us, I am willing to take them. God has higher and better plans and His will, will always be done. Then she asked me when my turn will be. :D I said I have to carry on for two more years before I am allowed to have a baby. Then she called me 'career woman'. Hahaha. 

The doctor advised her for bed rest since she had experienced some bleeding and she is at risk. Now, I don't want anything else but for her to be safe and deliver her baby safely, too. 

Lord, please bless my younger sister for a new life is living within her. Please allow her to keep herself and her baby away from danger or pain. Please grace her with a healthy mind, body and spirit that she may share it to this wonderful creation coming to our family soon. 

Butter Garlic Parmesan Chicken

I've cooked Butter Garlic Shrimps multiple times. In fact, it's now one of my favorite dishes aside from Fried Chicken. Haha. Now, I will try it on chicken and this time with Parmesan cheese and potatoes. Here's how:

Ingredients

chicken breast fillets

salt and pepper

butter

garlic

water

parsley

red chili flakes

Parmesan cheese

boiled potatoes

Preparation

1. Season the chicken with salt and pepper.

2. On medium heat, add butter. Pan fry the chicken until the surfaces are browned.

3. Remove the chicken and set aside.

4. Saute the garlic.

5. Add the chicken.

6. Lower the heat and let simmer.

7. Add the potatoes, some salt and pepper to taste, parsley flakes and chili flakes.

8. Top the chicken with Parmesan cheese.

9. Remove from heat and broil the chicken in the oven until the cheese melts.

Yum! :)

Acting Supervisor

Today was an open day for me which I turned into willing to fly and was eventually turned into a home standby from 3am to 3pm. I was sleeping when my phone rang at 440a. I was upgraded to a turnaround Alexandria flight. When I checked the crew list, I was the most senior and so, I am expected to be the acting supervisor for the operating legs. Thinking about the tasks of a supervisor by seeing them during the flight made me say it's easy. It's easy but whatever goes wrong, I know the responsibilities are mine. 

I conducted a briefing like how it normally goes. I met the other four girls. Two of them were only 5 months flying and the other two were almost 2 years. And I am a few months away to 3 years. That actually made me ask if I was legal to lead the flight with all our seniority dates. I didn't check and look for answers in our manuals but the Captain did when we were all on board, making sure we were following standards. I appreciated how thorough our PIC briefed us in almost all safety procedures. 

The flight went well. I received so many papers from ground personnel to the point of not knowing what to do with them :D. I had to press the many buttons and selections from the cabin system realizing I was already playing with them. Haha! I had to board everyone, check that everything was secured before take off and landing. I had to help in the galley especially when R1 had to attend the cockpit's needs and serve the business class passengers, too. Guest class was full but good thing the load in business was light or else I would have been here and there. I had to make sure slides were disarmed before any normal door openings. 

When we arrived in Alexandria, I handed the general declaration of the crew and the passenger manifest to the staff who welcomed our flight. In several flights, I have observed supervisors giving the empty insecticide bottle sprays (sprays we use to spray the cabin after take off) to ground staff, too, so I gave the whole thing to the man. I do not know what they do with those sprays next but the next thing I know, I was being reprimanded by our PIC for giving out those sprays. A staff went spraying those bottles in the cargo giving flight deck an indication that there was smoke going on. They later on discovered that it was only due to the insecticide sprays. Fire and smoke whether in the cabin or cargo are serious matters. Then the ground staff was also reprimanded. He said that they too normally receive those sprays upon arrival and spraying the cargo is what they do afterwards. I had no idea! But one thing's for sure. Though we all used up all the sprays, there must have been little left behind in a bottle that they were able to use up. 

I thought I'd already lost my job that moment on. When I said I was sorry, our Captain said no, it wasn't my fault. :) It was a safe flight back to base and I'm happy I've learned a lot of things today.

Thank you, Lord. :)

Lucknow, India

I was pretty impressed by Renaissance by Marriott hotel in Lucknow. Though I like Vivanta by Taj, our old layover hotel, this new one right next to Vivanta holds a modern luxury and contemporary comfort for everyone. 

05:00 First thing in the morning today, I was in the gym sweating out. I wanted to swim in the pool afterwards but it's not open until 12 noon. And I'd rather not since the pool is next to the Skybar where people would be enjoying their drinks with the view of the infinity pool.

07:00 Breakfast at L-14 All Day Dining

breakfast with this scenic view of Lucknow's landscape

08:00 Off I went for a quick sightseeing tour. I started at St. Joseph Cathedral School. The church was closed but the guard led me to a chapel. I was saying prayers and at the same time, I couldn't stop looking at every child who entered that mini prayer area- small Indian school children who said their prayers, too, touching the statues. 

These three sweet girls approached me as soon as I made it past the gate, telling me I was pretty. Ahaha.. They asked me where I am from. When I told them I'm from the Philippines, they all nodded. I wonder if they know which part of the world I come from. 

a few of them gathered in front of me wanting to be captured in my camera, too..

Next, the hotel driver took me to Bara Imambara, a grand Shia Muslim congregation hall, built in 1784. 

a spacious lawn after entering the gate of Imambara

a simple reward I got after passing through a complicated network of paths which were built to serve as confusion to enemy intruders before.. with my guide, it wasn't difficult to find my way out.. :) 

Lucknow's Clock Tower

Those were the places I visited for now. I hope I could go to other sightseeing spots here next time. Upon arriving back to the hotel, I took some nap, ate my lunch and prepared for a flight back to base.

February 9, 2016

23:00 Okay, so, I wanted to start this post while eating sunflower seeds which I got from a dates store, yesterday but I finished a full bowl and poured another, forgetting about this. :) I realized it's hard to do both when my concentration was on running my tongue along the salty outer shell, cracking the shells between my teeth, spitting the shells and chewing the seed. I craved for sunflower seeds since one of my colleagues brought some with her in one of my previous flights. She shared it with us and now, I have an idea of a health- promoting snack I can consume at home while watching tv or reading a book, instead of chips and other junk foods.

Sunflower seeds, chia seeds, flax seeds- I never took them before. I only started consuming them upon hearing from other girls how healthy they are. I learned to eat chia seeds by adding them up in cold drinks or juices and flax seeds in yogurt or cereals. Try them! Don't be deceived by their sizes because those tiny little things have powerful nutritional benefits. 

Yesterday, Marj cooked a butter garlic shrimp for our dinner at my apartment. My roommate, Jhen, joined us. It was a very enjoyable meal. Next time I'll put some shrimp paste on my butter garlic shrimp, too, to make it more tasty. 

Marj clicking the very first photo out of my newest travel buddy, while I was slicing the garlic and onions for our dinner.  

in love with this Go Pro Hero 4 :)

Today, I have learned the basics of this device including changing the backdoor and using the mounts. I'm happy there's now something I could use underwater and he's happier because he no longer have to carry the big and heavy SLR. :D

I'm excited of capturing and saving moments, the new way. c:

February 6, 2016

When I reached the Check Hostess to check in back from flight yesterday, I once again check my rank for the out of kingdom base and surprisingly, I'm on 103rd. I started from 200 something for more than 500 girls applying for Manila base. I opened my days off from Feb 6- 11, that must be the reason why my ranking improved. It's still a long run. Now, I'm thinking about applying for First Class since most girls say it has an advantage over the regular flying FAs. Whoa! I don't know when I'll have the guts to finally send an email to my supervisor about my interest. 

Today, I had the chance to cook Binagoongang Manok (Chicken in Salted Shrimp Paste), again. This time it is much way better than the first time I tried. :)

Here's how from a combination of two recipes I got online.

Ingredients:

1/2 kilo chicken breast (cut into medium size cubes)

1 cup coconut milk

1/2 cup pre- sauteed salted shrimp paste

3 cloves minced garlic

1 large onion chopped

cooking oil

2-3 pcs bay leaf

1 tsp crushed pepper corns

1/4 cup vinegar

1 tbsp sugar

salt

Preparation:

1. Saute the salted shrimp paste with some garlic and onions.

2. In a separate pan, stir- fry the chicken breast until slightly golden brown then set aside.

3. Using the same cooking oil from #2, saute the rest of the garlic and onion.

4. Add the chicken breast and saute for a few minutes.

5. Add the shrimp paste.

6. Add some water to prevent the chicken breast from drying up.

7. After two minutes, add the coconut milk.

8. Add the vinegar and sugar, bay leaf and pepper corns, and salt to taste.

I didn't have an actual coconut milk so I used milk powder boiled in water. One can also add chopped tomatoes and green chili. 

16:30 Pick- up. I'm thankful for almost 4 hours added to my flying time by opening my day off. Way to go! :) 

February 4, 2016

09:30 Breakfast at the Feast. I ordered for Cheese Masala Dosa. It's now my favorite part of breakfast during India layovers.

12:00 Thirty minutes at the Sheraton Fitness Gym

18:00 April and I went to Orion Mall to have a look at some stores on sale. We stopped by Zara and I was amazed at the ongoing discounts. I was able to buy a red sweater for only 590INR. I noticed that their clothes are made in Bangladesh. No wonder! Even regular priced items have lower price tags compared to other countries. 

We also went to the bookshop. I bought The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. I only read one book by him entitled The Devil and Miss Prym. I quite didn't like it so I didn't go far reading his other books. I've got his other book Eleven Minutes but I haven't read it yet. A lot of people love reading his books. I will try reading his stories again, by trying out this book I recently got from the bookstore. The Alchemist will be next to my reading list after Picture Perfect by Jodi Picoult. I stopped reading Picture Perfect and only resumed reading when I finished Reflections of a Man by Mr. Amari Soul. 

I was dying to read Mr. Amari Soul's book so I've put Picture Perfect down. :) Reflections of a Man is such a good read.

"Reflections Of A Man is a book designed for both men and women to enhance the quality of their personal relationships. For the women, it encourages you to recognize the true value of your love, to reevaluate your standards and to make the decision that you will no longer settle for anything less than someone who loves you, respects you, and truly makes you happy. For the men, this book will not only encourage you to learn more about the emotional needs of a woman, but it will provide you with clear insight into what a woman truly needs from you, emotionally, to be happy. Through beautiful words of poetry, powerful quotes and advice full of wisdom, Mr. Amari Soul creates a truly enlightening experience for both men and women with Reflections Of A Man. On one hand, women gain a new perspective on the true value of their love, raise their standards and refuse to settle. On the other hand, men become better equipped to, not only understand a woman’s emotional needs, but they are better able to meet or exceed their new standards as well."

19:30 Dinner at Zaffran

I'm so lucky to have April as my flying partner on this month of February. I could say she's an answered prayer because I've been asking God for signs or answers to a dilemma in one of my life's aspects now. I knew her since I joined my first beauty pageant during my teenage years. She was one of the judges in a college beauty contest in Intramural's. I knew her because she used to join big beauty pageants in Leyte. Now this makes me remember the times I started joining contests too right after winning that school event. I went to towns especially places celebrating their fiesta. I'd compete with other girls from different towns. I also joined contests in my own town too and even barangay competitions. Haha! In most times, I was alone with my make- up artist. In some cases, my family would watch me onstage. The biggest event I joined was something unforgettable. I actually fainted in front of a big crowd. Everything went blurry, I fell on my knees and the next thing I knew, I was being carried by a bunch of people backstage. I was conscious but very pale and weak, I couldn't manage to open my mouth and everything else on my system just gave up working. I just lied down there, incapable of competing for the rest of the evening. 

Well, that's what happens in competitions. It's like life. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. And rarely, you literally become breathless and fall. Haha :D

April is such a sweet woman with a kind heart. We are the same age but I look up to her. It's only our first layover together but I've learned so many things from her about life and relationships. She's a married woman for almost 4 years and from her stories, she seem to be surrounded with people who continuously give her counsels about her married life. She's full of positive energy and nothing comes out of her except for either funny things that will make me laugh or good things that will make me think and reflect about my own life. She told me to never listen to other people whose intentions are to break apart a relationship. She never runs out of good advice. Other people appearing into lives of two people not only happens when they are girlfriends and boyfriends. It happens when they are engaged. It happens few days before their wedding. It even happens when they're married. It depends on how strong their love and support is to one another if they'll allow other people to break them. 

We enjoyed our Indian dinner over a few tears that we both shed but more laughter. Thank you Lord God, for an answered prayer. :) 

February 3, 2016

I slept for 12 hours before my flight today but towards the end of it, I was already starting to feel sleepy. I guess it's normal when you fly red- eye. I also believe sleeping through the night, will help you get through the day but sleeping through the day won't give a guarantee that you can get through the night. I'm sure some people who work at night shifts understand this.

Past 02:00 (A reminder: I have to review my First Aid learning's especially CPR because I never know when I can use them. I just got lucky I didn't have to do it this time because we were still on ground and ground services were there but what if this happened after take off ? or what if they weren't immediately available?) Everyone was busy boarding passengers when an old diabetic passenger on board was being taken cared off by his family members. I didn't know what the situation was until the supervisor instructed me to get something sweet to drink for this patient. When people stopped coming in, I quickly went to the lavatory to answer the call of nature and when I came out, I just saw ground medical services rushing to attend the already unconscious passenger. They did compression's and took turns while we managed to control the curious passengers who were already standing. Eventually, they offloaded him through a medical lift with his family. What happened next is only the doctor knows. God bless him and his family!

Good job for me on the flight today because I only ate banana, apples and pancakes. (I'm not really sure if I should include apples since I was eating them with salt :D) And I got myself a lunch for dinner- brown rice, boiled eggs and Moroccan sardines. This way I won't have to spend too much for ordering room service for only a single meal. :)

On a chat with him today after flight, he had asked me:

Jeff: mag unsa man ka today?
Me: mgread lang ug book pangga
Jeff: pila na ka books nimu wala pa ma read gani?
Me: daghan (laughing)
Jeff: puno nah imung bookshelf?
Me: oo
Jeff: tigum para palit ug bookshelf

Ahaha. His simple way of telling me not to spend too much. I knew it. :D

No To Aircraft Food

Really. I'm trying so hard to avoid eating the unhealthy aircraft foods. I promised to board a plane armed with some healthy foods- may it be made at home, purchased from a known shop, or put together from layover hotels. (Funny how I try to be heath- conscious this way when in other ways I fail. :D) 

Before my flight to Cairo today, I ate full. I told myself I won't consume any heated meals from the aircraft because it's only a two- hour flight going and another two coming back. I ate before I left so I thought I could wait to eat until I arrive back. I even bought lasagna from the cafeteria in Flight Operations in case my tummy tells me it needs something to take. This is what happened during the flight. I initially had bananas and chicken sandwich. But when I saw I the Chicken Biryani loaded by catering in Cairo, I couldn't resist it. :D 

I'm telling you, I tried but I just couldn't. 

Promise, will do better on control & discipline next time! :)

February 1, 2016

04:30 I've unpacked all my things and my trolley is ready for a turnaround flight tonight. I've taken my breakfast. I've emailed the office that I am willing to fly on my days off from February 6 to 11. It's my way of getting points to becoming a Manila base crew. Now, I'm on 162nd from 400 plus (updated: 500 plus) people vying for the out of kingdom base. It's a very challenging competition, I know. 

I'm ready to hit the sack, too. 

We agreed we'd skype today. 

Good night on a morning! :)

Updated: February 3, 2016