Creepy Carrot Cake

I started this little tradition of baking something special every time my baby niece turned a month older. On her first month last September, I baked fudge brownies for the first time. I can't believe I forgot to post it here. Yesterday, she turned two months old. It being October, I picked carrot cake to go with the orange theme of Halloween.

I used the same fluted cake pan for this recipe. I mixed red and yellow food coloring to make the white frosting turn orange. Instead, it turned salmon pink.

Slathered the salmon pink frosting all over the cake then sliced these little pumpkin Peeps to decorate the top.

Then, I squeezed red icing alongside the Peeps for a blood-stained effect. Sort of like bleeding pumpkins. Also added red sugar sprinkles.

Creepy Carrot Cake! It's a sugar overload that might send you searching for the best fat burner after a significant serving(s). But hey, it's Halloween! It's sugar and spice...go have a slice!

Happy Halloween Kids

I was able to send this Halloween greeting card to some friends this year. It's designed by Punch Studio, the same company that made this Victorian-inspired greeting card set I bought last year. Black cats, pumpkins and children all dressed in their orange best. I can't wait to see what costumes the kids will be in when they knock on our door this Sunday!

It's not just Halloween that's spooky, we've had weird, warm weather for autumn recently. A few thunderstorms, too, which made me wear my rain boots. Have a horrifyingly happy halloween weekend, everyone!

The Cake Chronicles Continue

So I bought a fluted cake pan so I can enter the next baking level: from cupcakes to cakes! I used Betty Crocker German Chocolate cake mix for this attempt.

With this pan, the cake looked like a giant donut! I was pressed for time since this was supposed to be a birthday cake the same afternoon I made it so I quickly dressed it up with white frosting and red sprinkles.

Supersized birthday donut! Homer Simpson would be drooling!

It tasted moist and chocolatey sweet just like the box described. We brought the donut-cake to the Puerto Rican restaurant where we celebrated my sister's boyfriend's birthday. It was the same day that I had that freak accident. Good thing I wasn't carrying the cake when it happened. But I still enjoyed my Bacalao dinner that night!

Last night, I was watching "Wedding Cake Wars" on the Wedding Central Channel. They had a contest for mostly amateur cake-makers and the theme was "locations." You pick a famous destination and decorate your cake with that place in mind. One of the contestants was Carolina Lara, a Puerto Rican housewife with three kids who made theme cakes as a home business--she baked in her own home! Her cake was supposed to look like El Morro (which looks like the doppelganger of Manila's own Intramuros), that Puerto Rican landmark in Old San Juan (which I have a postcard of). Her husband was her assistant. She didn't win, but her efforts were inspiring. Another team with a gorgeous African Safari themed cake won first place.

Could fondant be in my baking future? Watching those cake shows make fondant-forming look like playing with modeling clay, except it's edible. Maybe if I try my hand at it, I could create some fantastic fondant cakes, too...especially for my niece's first birthday in August next year! That way, I won't just be sending the 1st birthday invitations, I'll be baking the cake too!

Litratong Pinoy #88: Ingay (Noise)

I was lucky to catch the local festival in my hometown in the Philippine province of Capiz last May. It's called the "Tagbu-an Festival." The name comes from the local dialect's root word "Tagbo," meaning "to meet." Since my hometown is by the sea, most people are fishermen. The act of welcoming back fishermen with their catch of the day is called "Tagbu-an." Of course, what are festivals without merrymaking noise from happy townsfolk, such as these charming little banduria-playing girls?

And there were beautiful dancers in vibrant costumes, too! They all looked so young, I wondered if I should be shopping for the best wrinkle cream around.

There was a street-dancing competition in which dancers from different "baranggays" or town boroughs interpreted the same folk song. They were judged according to costume, choreography, and overall presentation.

Here's a short clip of a group's dance interpretation:

I looooove fiestas! They're loud, fun and delicious!

Halina't makiusyoso kayo sa piesta namin sa Pilar, Capiz! Maingay, makulay, at masaya!

Pop-Tarts World Is Becoming Popular!

Last August, I spotted the newest novelty store near Times Square: Pop-Tarts World. If you're a fan of this flavorful toaster-activated breakfast pastry, then you should visit its shrine in New York City. It's just along 42nd St. I'm not an authority on P90x reviews, but I'm better off reviewing Pop-Tart flavors!

Inside you'll find a Cafe with different desserts inspired by all things Pop-Tarts...such as Pop-Tarts ice cream and even Pop-Tarts Sushi! I have yet to sample anything from their delicious-looking menu, though!

I know Pop-Tarts is best enjoyed warm from a toaster, but I actually don't mind eating it straight from the pack!

The Pop-Tarts Varietizer is a fun machine that lets you choose which flavors you want in a souvenir box. There's always a queue here! Right now they have seasonal, limited edition flavors such as Pumpkin Pie and Gingerbread.

And you can wear your Pop-Tarts love with these customizable shirts, too!

Stay for a little while and you get treated to a brief light-and-music show inside the store! Since I can get Pop-Tarts at our local grocery store, I simply bought a few Pop-Tarts postcards to pop in the mailbox.

What's your favorite Pop-Tarts flavor?

Fallen Evidence

 

Look Up, Look Down,

Look Around;

That's what makes a Photographer sound,

Yielding fun photos to be found.

Yes, I just came up with that! These amber leaves were on the ground at the cemetery: an example of simply looking down, then shooting it with my celfone's camera. I can easily print several copies of this photo via document imaging if I wanted to, and send it out as an Autumn greeting card perhaps. Or a postcard.

Owl Be There For You

It's been two months since I joined the populace of people owning Nikon DSLR cameras. Before that (way back in July), my Sony Cybershot spied these Halloweenish details at the Bethesda Terrace in New York's Central Park.

An owl with bat company. Speaking of owls, I have a Halloween owl shirt from Target. Not sure yet if I'm just wearing that on Halloween or dig up a black dress.

 

Witch in flight on a broomstick. 

Odd, but they were really there. It's easy to miss them if your eyes aren't keen on spotting little details that make up the whole. See if you can find them too when you visit Bethesda Terrace!

Ooommph!!!

 "Do-do you got a first aid kit handy?"

So yesterday afternoon, I had a freak accident just outside my sister's apartment building when I tripped on uneven pavement as we were walking towards the car. I was reaching for the car keys in my coat pocket when something blocked my shoe while my feet kept pacing. Next thing I knew, I was falling sideways on the grass with my hands instinctively planting themselves on the ground for support. The impact was all on my vulnerable arm, the one with the previous shoulder dislocation. My sister, who was walking behind me, got a good vantage point of my fall.

My camera hanging around my neck also came tumbling down with me. Thankfully, I didn't break or twist any bones, nor did I hit my face or skull in a manner that would make acne remedies inappropriate. My hands did suffer from scratches from grazing against the gravel. Now my right arm feels sore, like it swam multiple laps in a pool by itself. Mobility is okay.The grass helped to somehow soften my forceful landing, as well as that of the camera. The lens cap did pop off, though.

We went on to celebrate my sister's boyfriend's birthday at a Puerto Rican restaurant last night. On hindsight, I thought, if the camera got badly damaged from the accident, at least it's replaceable. Human body parts would be far more costly. And if we had to sue the apartment building's owners, that would be such a hassle, too. My case would be a Torts/Personal Injury case if ever.

Sue Or Gaga?

Seriously, I did not intend this drawing to resemble Glee's Sue Sylvester. But don't you think this can be a potential Lady Gaga look? And WHAT THE FOX?! Our cable provider is still having this mad dispute with Fox Network! Glee's gone! It's like I live outside the United States and can't watch Glee live on Tuesday night until they fix their legal mess!

This drawing was inspired by The Prodigy's song "Breathe." If you watch the music video, one of the band members has that similar tattoo on his face. I used to listen to The Prodigy's album while preparing to go to school. It got me psyched up for the day ahead. However, I advise against using "Breathe" as a song to listen to if you're going to labor in the hospital. ("Inhale, inhale...you are the victim!")

Ging has been dabbling with watercolor pencils lately. I just doodled this with a blue ballpoint pen while listening to said song online.

Or do you think my hand-drawn character can be one for the comic books or any of those hidden object games in role-playing style? Such games can be downloadable straight to your PC or Mac to be played whenever you wish.

No matter how engaged you are with the game you're playing, don't forget to "Breathe!"

Fly Like A G6

Have you heard that club song by the Far East Movement (which, by the way, is an Asian rap group)? I spent a day with that song spinning in my head not too long ago. The G6 may have political references, or simply a fast car, or a fast plane as implied by the music video's ending.

I just want to fly...period. And perhaps look "fly" doing it. At the beginning of this year, I had planned/wished on flying somewhere. I did get to fly to the Philippines last summer. This sign suggests that Los Angeles is the closest destination to fly to from the sign's point of origin which is Chicago's Navy Pier (where I was last June).

Anybody can fly on a commercial plane, but not everyone gets to fly on a helicopter to get a good vantage point for aerial photography. If you're too scared of riding a helicopter, these dudes can do it for you. They specialize in going up in the air to produce aerial videography and aerial cinematography clips for your creative use: travel shows, movies with skyline views while actually being in the sky--the sky's the limit!

Wo Ai Liao!

I finally got around to framing this 300-piece jigsaw puzzle inspired by Jimmy Liao's book "A Chance of Love," which has been made into a movie called "Turn Left Turn Right." I fell in love with this book which I chanced upon at a Hallmark Store clearance sale many years ago. Consequently, I fell in love with Jimmy Liao's art.

Imagine, therefore, my sheer delight when I spotted Jimmy Liao merchandise at the Duty-Free Gift Shop in Taiwan's Taoyuan Airport last June on my layover back from the Philippines. It was then that I remembered that Liao is based in Taiwan.

I finished the puzzle above in about three days. It was maddening to figure out where the yellow parts were supposed to go. But it was satisfying to find exactly where each piece fit. The size of the finished puzzle had odd dimensions: 10.5 x 15 inches, which made it harder for me to find a big enough (and cheap enough) frame.

I also bought this other puzzle: a 60-piece, 3-D one that's spherically-shaped when finished. A puzzle ornament! I haven't done this one yet. I should do it in time for when we hang ornaments on the Christmas tree this year. It also features romantic scenes from the book I mentioned above.

You can turn the ball around and see other scenes of them doing cute things together as seen in the book. Did I mention I have puzzle-philia?

Then I bought two of these pen and bookmark sets which feature art from his other book, "The Sound of Colors." The other set I already gave to my bookworm cousin in Illinois last summer. There are only a few of his books sold here in the States that are printed in English. I was tormented to see his other books in Taiwan that were in Chinese. Thus, I resigned myself to these items.

But because I was so excited to buy these, I didn't bother to calculate their dollar equivalent. Along with a slew of uniquely crafted Taiwan postcards and bookmarks, I ended up spending around $50 on my credit card! For stationery items! I could have bought other things with that money, like maybe Taiwanese desserts or natural acne cream from their line of beauty products. But I was happy with my purchase. I won't find authentic Jimmy Liao stuff where I live, not even on Ebay.

And I can admire the puzzle I painstakingly completed on my bedroom wall, where it now hangs.

Trick Or Tweet

So I finished installing the skull string lights I bought on clearance last year for Halloween. I luckily found a spare green light bulb in the house to replace the one on the front door to give it a ghoulish glow. In case you're wondering what the big, dark thing is on the lower left of the photo, it's this Halloween cat.

Now all that's missing is the Halloween candy. I should shy away from large amounts that might require the help of Hydroxycut.

And speaking of Halloween cats, this one just transformed into Hello Batty!

Hello Kitty has turned to the Dark Side!

Are You Smarter Than A Fifth-Grader?

What academic complexities do fifth-graders learn nowadays? Do YOU remember what topics you encountered in school back in the fifth grade?

I sometimes help my 9-year-old cousin with her homework. There's reading comprehension, then there's math. I hated math as a kid, partly because we had a terrifying math teacher who liked to throw chalk bits and dagger looks at her students. I grew up still hating math. When I try to check my little cousin's homework, sometimes I feel like I'm the 9-year-old. 

5th grade math wizard, I was not. Same goes for 4th grade math. Even if math wasn't my favorite subject, I knew that things like adding fractions would come in handy later in life. Like now that I'm learning to bake. Measurements matter in mixing the batter!

Sure, tutors were an available option back then, but in this electronic age, online tutoring is the rage. If math is your child's waterloo, then you might want to consider summoning the arithmetic specialists online to help him understand the numbers that boggle his mind. I used to ask the heavens what the purpose of learning Algebra 2, formula for volume, or graphing linear equations is for in my life, but later I would see that it's really the problem-solving and analytical skills that are being developed by all that number-crunching.

I'm just glad I'm way past those math subjects and have passed them all.

P.S. These kawaii umbrellas were at a gift shop near Rockefeller Center. I'm torn between the pink cat and red ladybug.

Lego-Lust

Last July, I visited the new Lego Store in Rockefeller Plaza. It opened in June of this year! It's a place to indulge your Lego-lust in! What was so cool about that store was that they have Lego-fied replicas of the art deco sculptures seen around Rockefeller Plaza, such as this imitation of the golden Prometheus statue.

You can let your imagination run as wild as this green brick dragon! The wall to the right has round dispensers of Lego pieces in a variety of shapes and sizes to choose from. What's to be built is totally up to you!

Here's a Lego version of the Atlas statue, a famous sculpture that originally stands opposite St. Patrick's Cathedral along 5th Ave. The guy below must have thought I was taking his picture, but I later thought it was good he stood underneath it so his head can be a reference point for the sculpture's size.

Look up and you'll see more Lego masterpieces. Like this cartoony impression of the artwork originally seen on the entrance of the GE Building in Rockefeller Center. They took the artistic liberty of replacing the words "Wisdom and Knowledge" with "Creativity and Imagination." Don't you think this piece is just begging for a comic bubble?

I played with Lego and some Lego-like toys as a child. This man, though, took his love for Lego to the level of fine art: Nathan Sawaya. He calls himself the Brick Artist. I hope to check out his upcoming exhibit in New York City next month!

Unlikely "Crime" Scene

I was delighted to get a postcard from the artistic, fellow postcard enthusiast (take a peek at her postcard box), co-blogger and newest "recruit" over at our other blog of a friend, Lauren. It's a vintage illustrated postcard of the Manila Cathedral which dates back to 1987. What's even more beautiful about this postcard is her handwritten message on the back which boasts of a calligraphic style that makes me want to weep. I think the last time I ever held a speedball pen and dipped it in india ink was in elementary (yes, we were taught calligraphy back then)!

How many people still care about writing postcards or personal notes the old-fashioned way these days? They'd rather email, send picture messages or view slide shows of their memory cards on Wii rather than mail actual photos. Well, you can't send a postcard with your Wii console and remote. It doesn't have that feature...yet.

The Manila Cathedral is located inside the historic "Walled City" of Manila: Intramuros. Recently, a famous local tour guide by the name of Carlos Celdran was arrested when he entered said cathedral in a costume mimicking that of the Philippines' National Hero, Dr. Jose Rizal while a Catholic mass was going on and held a sign that simply said "Damaso." It was the name of a villainous Spanish friar in the novel authored by Dr. Rizal. It was his unique way of protesting the involvement of the church in the passage of the very controversial Reproductive Health Bill in a country that is predominantly Roman Catholic.

Mr. Celdran was charged with "Offending the Religious Feelings," an obscure provision in the Philippine Revised Penal Code. How is this crime committed? According to Art. 133 of the statute, it is when "anyone who, in a place devoted to religious worship or during the celebration of any religious ceremony shall perform acts notoriously offensive to the feelings of the faithful."

Mr. Conrado de Quiros wrote a very compelling and honest opinion regarding the "Damaso" incident.

Now, WWJRD? (What Would Jose Rizal Do?)

Litratong Pinoy #87: Publiko (Public)

Last Sunday, my sister and I went to a Harvest Festival next town. It's an annual event with fun rides, craft and vintage items for sale and German booze and bratwurst that went on for years until they stopped doing it a long time ago. This year, they brought it back. It was my first time to go to this autumnal public gathering.

It was a good thing the sun shone the day prior to this event, because we had a few days of rain which had briefly flooded the festival grounds. It would have been so frustrating for a lot of families if the much-awaited comeback of this event got postponed.

There were big, shiny firetrucks from that town. We love firetrucks. And I love firemen.

They have a "tricky tray," which is just a tricky little way of saying "raffle".

OMG! A headless beer maiden! Poor fraulein! I know, it's just paper decor.

There was a farmer's market selling fall favorites. It's hardly a "harvest festival" without these!

I've carved pumpkins for Halloween before, but have never painted them like these.

Crafty vendors sold interesting things like these pinecone-shaped "firestarters," presumably to use at your fireplace, not to be pyromaniacs. Or maybe to be used as regular scented candles.

Wooden lawn decor for the "ber" holidays!

This porky sign is actually for the antiques section, not for meats as one might think.

There was even a "Berry-Go-Round" which I thought was berry cute! I hope next year's Fall Festival will be bigger and better!

First time ko ma-experience ang Harvest/Fall Festival dito, isang sikat na pampublikong pagtitipon tuwing Autumn. Eto na kasi ang huling hirit na magpakasaya outdoors habang di pa umuulan ng snow. Namigay sila ng libreng reusable tote bag. Nawala ko pa ang lens cap ng camera ko sa sobrang paglilitrato...buti na lang may mabait na babaeng nakapulot nito sa damuhan at sinoli sa akin nung nakita niya akong naglilitrato. Akala ko tuloy oorder pa ako ng Nikon lens cap sa Ebay! Hehe.