Weather & Food

DAYS have been mostly at 13 Degrees Celsius, more or less. Very good. On overcast days, it drops down to 9 and that amazes me. I take the sun for granted in Manila. I run away from it most of the time. Pero dito, I hope it is always out all day. Clouds are nice. They are pretty. But I don't want them blocking my source of warmth.

Still, I am not quite as loco as the young locals who sun bathe even in the unsafe hours from noon to 3 p.m.

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I have so much more respect for waiters and waitresses. Last Saturday, I volunteered to help out with Churches United in Ministry (CHUM) benefit dinner for homeless people. Hannah explianed that every year, they always have international students help out with the benefit. So I said yes, not knowing what to expect.

Yikes. There was so much work. And it all had to be done really fast. All six of us laid out appetizer plates, kept the punch bowl filled, bussed the appetizer plates, poured water, collected the dinner plates, served dessert. My estimation is that we served 100 to 125 people that evening. Now I will always tip big.

But I did have fun, though it was a lot of work. I got to meet the Islamic women of Duluth. Of course, there wasn't much time to talk. But before the guests came, they fed us volunteers at the kitchen and ended up sharing the meal with us too (That's the photo up there). Wow, WONDERFUL VEGETABLE POTATO SOMOSAS! HEAVENLY LENTIL! YUMMY MEAT DISH THAT I DON'T KNOW WHAT IT IS CALLED! And those were just the appetizers! (We got to eat some dinner later after the guests were served.) And those DELICIOUS NAN BREAD DIPS! OH-MY-GOD! I need to remind myself to ask Hannah for her mom's Somosa recipe.