KFC Saturday & Aneesha finds a weapon that could kill the aliens

We finally gave in.

Too blah to cook. I had to wake up early to recreate the goddamned corrupted 3D file which was easier the 2nd time around because now I knew where all the elements went in. And I used objects in actual scale which didn’t make any difference as I belived it would, but shaved off heaps of time in scaling them down to size.

But the program did become noticeably slower as I added more and more objects into the 3D space and I was thinking, if I only had the new MacBook Pro with the M1 Max chip, mmmmm ($6,054!).

So it’s episode 6 already in Apple TV + Invasion and the slowness - while it’s done really well mostly- is making me ask a lot of questions with no answers in sight. Like what happened to Sam Neil’s retired sheriff character way back in episode one?? Is he dead or not? If you remember, he was digging around the strange crop circle in a farmer’s field when the aliens somehow ‘stabbed’ him with something. The last shot is of him somewhat looking either stunned or dramatically dead with his eyes open. But judging by how a slew of soldier’s bodies were shown mangled and mutilated in episode 6, there’s still hope that Sam was merely temporarily incapacitated. But it’s strange that it’s this far into the series and that story arc has been totally abandoned.

Going back to Aneesha, she manages to go back to the house and arrives to find it barricaded against something. Her family and the couple who took their family in Patrick and Kelly, are hiding in the attic and this is expectedly where the friendly, sympathetic atmosphere evaporates as everyone panics.

Aneesha declares that they were leaving, and this is where everything goes south; the daughter falls through the attic floor and Aneesha follows to rescue her. The noise alerts the alien, and we see for the 1st time what it looks like- a sort of octopus with tentacles and bristling, camouflage-like skin. Kelly falls through the same underlay flooring, but manages to hold on- but the alien gets her as Patrick desperately tries to hoist his wife up.

Aneesha and Ahmed make it downstairs but Ahmed is attacked while trying to move the furniture they used to barricade the door. Aneesha and the kids escape through a window in the basement and try to make a run for it using Patrick and Kelly’s car. But the alien rams itself through the windshield and takes its time to eat/kill/spit at Aneesha with its multi-layered mouth. Aneesha shoots it (no use), then rams a stick-thingy into its mouth (no use), then throws what looks like a phone-book at it (no use), before finding the weird, stone-age like spear flint that Luke had found and stabs the thing with it- success!

My theory is that while conventional weapons can’t kill it, material from their world can- like the way Kryptonite affects Superman. Because why would it be a special kind of weapon?? It doesn’t look like one and was most likely a shard of something that crashed/exploded when the Malik’s neighbourhood was attacked in episode 2.

The philandering Ahmed survives the attack after all and limps out of the house. Aneesha is relieved to see him, but had he not survived, she would have moved on, but I guess when everyone you know is dying around you, it’s probably comforting to have familiar people around. At this point, whatever they’ve done to you pales in comparison to the life and death struggle you all face.

Ugh

Friday should be a day of celebration, because it’s the end of (another hard) working week; but then life just continues to be the suck-fest that it has been since 2020. Like one of my favourite singers of all time, Carrie Underwood is a vaccination card non-carrier because she’s not only anti-vax, but also anti-mask, and most likely voted for Trump. They’re all the same really that fun bunch.

And to cap off a long work day- even if I get off at 2pm- the 3D file I had been working on for the last three days suddenly won’t open and I may have to redo the whole goddamned thing again.

FUCK YOUR STUPID EXPENSIVE PRODUCTS THAT WON’T WORK PROPERLY ADOBE!

It's not embutido or a meatloaf

You didn't use pork-mince. There’s no eggs, raisins, carrots, Vienna sausage or a boiled egg in it. So it’s not embutido, not really. And the classic meatloaf uses ground beef and bread crumbs.

But it’s using the same principles of some ground protein and seasonings and is either cooked in a bain-marie or baked in the oven. It’s wrapped like an embutido too, and like meatloaf, there’s going to be a gravy sauce for it, probably a butter-based mustard sauce.

Because what do you do with 20 packs of chicken breasts in the deep freeze? We bought them in bulk at Gilmours and much as I want to make Korean fried-chicken every other day, I can’t. On one hand, prepared chicken mince at the supermarket for 500 grams is like $8. The Gilmours bulk buy turned out to be something like 800-1kg per pack at $6. So all you need is a food processor really.

For this- okay let’s call it chicken roll- I used a bunch of frozen spinach, a whole red capsicum, a large white onion and heaps of cheese which I guess acts like a binder.

Pictures of it cooked and served tomorrow.

Tuesday wish-list

  1. Fruitcake

  2. Lechon pork-belly ( I hope Doyet makes some for Noche Buena).

  3. Getting to try out the Cordis’ hotel’s new wing

  4. Losing at least 3kgs (haven’t budged from 73kgs).

  5. Get to finish one of the dozen of stories I’m working on

  6. Get to finish one creative work

  7. Re-do the side garden

  8. Get rid of this wisdom tooth in the most painless way possible

  9. Been wanting to make leche-flan in like forever

  10. Massive seafood dinner

  11. Get to finish 5 books before year’s end

Ryan's Christmas Gift Registry

I don’t care about the critics- the current government still has a good grip on a situation that could be ten times worse (and a hundred times worse in other countries). The critics could either drop dead or catch Covid; either way, FUCK YOU and you don’t know squat. Anyhoo, a weird call today- level 3.2 which allows for some businesses to open (like malls!) and others to remain closed like restaurants (boo!) and cinemas (double boo!).

So if you’re an anti-vaxxer, you can go out on Wednesday and catch yourself some Covid- that will teach you.

I’ve done all my shopping and besides, the only times I go to a store is when I’m not sure of the fit or the fabric; I buy the majority of my clothes from the same labels so I know my fit 99% of the time. But yeah, going out there is like playing Covid roulette, and for what? For a pair of goddamned pants lol. Not worth it.

And speaking of shopping, here’s a list of stuff I’d like to by for myself if money is no object; after all dreaming is free…

Sunday extremes

From a chilly 10 degree morning to a sweltering (1) 21 degrees. It was so hot that doing chores felt like swimming through water. This is why I can never live in the tropics again.

Saturday

I
Our barely one-year old (cheapish) washing machine broke. I had to hand-wash clothes in the old tub and had the vague feeling that the detergent was not meant for such a process. But I don’t live in a country where washing-machines are as common as TV sets and where I can go into a supermarket to buy special detergent meant for soaking and manual washing. I didn’t dawdle long- you just focus on two areas, the arm-pits and the crotch. Not that there’s anything nasty there. I change my clothes and underwear everyday still and I hardly sweat. The water was freezing and I discovered that while I can lift 30kg dumbbells I hardly had the strength to squeeze water out of the clothes.

My hands looked plump and bloated after, and I remember the hands of our old lavenderas back in Pangasinan, how worn and red they were. And the loads they did good Lord - denim, blankets and towels. And by the time the clothes were dry as they often did quicker in the tropics, it was mid-afternoon and the lavandera would be folding and sorting the clothes. I remember getting breads and sweets and Coke at the store, and we would eat and exchange gossip as we waited for my mother to arrive so they could be paid. I miss those days; no washing machine can surpass human hands.

II
We set up the Christmas tree today. Two years ago, we bought a cheaper one at Kmart, and it was black pine which we thought was chic. But part of me wasn’t convinced because I could see through its paltry 600 plus tips and it really bothered me. So last year I bit the bullet and bought a 3,000 tip, $700 (we got it 50% off so paid only $350) tree and I was finally satisfied. Christmas is one of the last things where you cut corners and compromised, which is kinda stupid because after the 25th has come and gone, it dawns on you that sentiment really has nothing to do with logic and reality. But I realised that this feeling is universal. Aucklanders- or so the media claims- are about to revolt that Christmas this year was going to be cancelled; and mistakenly by the government, and not by a virus that is lurking in all corners of the city. But from what I have seen, there is really nothing special about the way Kiwis celebrate Christmas- the food is crap, the gifts have a $20 cap and everyone gets drunk and pissed by Boxing Day. But habit and sentiment is all part of the tradition, isn’t it? Anyhow, I’m ready and prepared- 99% of all gifts have been bought and sorted, and an emergency menu has been worked out.

A broken washing machine and Covid are not the end of the world; but an ugly Christmas tree can be super annoying.

I'm hungry

I reward myself with three things- tech, nice clothes and food.

Since I really need to think about retirement, I’ve put a sensible brake on the 1st two and as for the third, it’s kind of tricky, very tricky. In the Philippines, you can eat cheap, and it’s healthier. A bit of rice, heaps of vegetables and fish. I could live on that with pork barbecue and lechon once a month.

But eating healthy in New Zealand is expensive. You can count with your ten fingers, how many vegetables there are at any given time and even less in winter when your best bet is frozen. Seafood is not a staple and more of a luxury unless you were willing to rent a boat or go on a charter to catch your ow which is ridiculous. I love salmon but it’s not something you can eat every day and I’ve seen the price go up and up and up since 2008.

I avoid processed carbs, sugars and some fats (!), so essentially, my diet has come to consist of nothing but espresso in the morning; there was a couple of weeks at the start of this year’s lockdown when I had an oat-meal run, but I got sick of that; I would have the occasional bread, but would pick those fancy sprouted variants; for lunch, the previous night’s left-overs if there’s any would do; more coffee during the day and then dinner which is normally a protein and some carbs like rice or vegetables. I think I average less than 2,000 calories a day.

It’s a bit more than that during the weekend where I do have a proper lunch (sushi or a meal called Katsubi which is like sumo wrestler food but with more meats and veggies and less or no carbs; and then for dinner we rotate around chicken (baked chicken wings or air-fried), pork (belly) or beef roasts. And snacks! I love what they call crisps (potato chips) which I’ve started to lessen and ice-cream- I’m not completely lactose-intolerant and can finish off a whole container.

And because I don’t get enough vegetables, I’ve taken to taking fibre supplements along with four other supplements which I’ve been taking for the better part of 15-20 years.

But I’m hungry..I’m a hungry man…

Lists! 100 Ways to Live to 100: A Definitive Guide to Longevity Fitness

How many can you personally tick off?

1. Eat fresh ingredients grown nearby

2. Eat a wide variety of vegetables

3. Eat until 80% full

4. Eat home-cooked family dinners

5. Embrace complex carbohydrates

6. Consider a plant-based diet

7. Substitute meat with fish

8. Try not to eat just before bed

9. Let yourself feel hunger

10. Eat dark chocolate

11. Make more PB&Js (peant butter & jelly)

12. Eat more beans

13. Eat more nuts

14. Cook with olive oil instead of butter

15. Put a cap on fun foods

16. Eat slowly

17. Drink more water

18. Drink red wine at 5:00 p.m.

19. Drink tea every day

20. Coffee is also a good idea

21. Try the Mediterranean Diet

22. Let food be

23. Stop drinking cow’s milk

24. Know it’s never too late

25. Stick to your dietary changes

26. Sleep more than seven hours a night

27. Practice yoga

27. Meditate for 15 minutes a day

28. Schedule an annual physical

29. Start strength training

30. Move every day

31. Optimize your workplace

32. Keep an active sex life

33. Hang from a bar for one minute a day

34. Turn the volume down

35. Breathe through your nose

36. Relax your jaw

37. Exercise in the cold

38. Get off the toilet

39. Use sunscreen

40. Take power naps

41. Pick up HIIT

42. Learn to play again

43. Worry less about weight loss

44. Screen for cancer regularly

45. Make sure to floss once a day

46. Practice sleep hygiene

47. Start running

48. Get into swimming

49. Forget the six-pack

50. Ask for help

51. Don’t ride a motorcycle

52. Don’t take up BASE jumping

53. Don’t eat processed foods

54. Don’t take hard drugs

55. Don’t ingest tobacco

56. Don’t smoke e-cigarettes

57. Don’t binge drink

58. Don’t eat hot dogs

59. Don’t have unprotected sex

60. Don’t drive under impairment

61. Don’t live in the middle of nowhere

62. Don’t blindly pop OTC pills

63. Don’t overeat

64. Don’t eat more protein than you need

65. Don’t stay in a stressful job

66. Don’t hold a grudge

67. Don’t blame your genes

68. Don’t sit around all day

69. Don’t doomscroll

70. Don’t binge-watch Netflix

71. Don’t binge on screentime

72. Don’t play American football

73. Don’t fool around in National Parks

74. Don’t mess with firearms

75. Don’t ignore air quality

76. Check your household products

77. Live with a purpose

78. Manage negative thought loops

79. Have a plan after retirement

80. Pick up “forest bathing”

81. Settle down near a body of water

82. Play board games

83. Join a team

84. Tell the truth

85. Listen to live music twice a month

86. Take colder showers

87. Read before bed

88. Keep a journal

89. Embrace behavioral activation

90. Avoid social jetlag

91. Learn a language

92. Show up to events

93. Maintain friendships

94. Make time to travel

95. Visit museums

96. Find your spiritual side

97. Change your mind

98. Have a family

99. Summon some empathy

100. Celebrate aging: Not just in the birthday cake sense. Those who approach aging with a positive outlook end up aging easier than others. Proactively acknowledge what’s to come instead of fretting about the wrinkles under your eyes. Maybe you’ll make it to 100. Maybe you won’t. But your absolute best chance comes from living your best life along the way.

(You can read the full article here)