What do you do for a living??
Anyone who has read my “About Page” knows that I was previously a commercial and corporate banker and a strategic management consultant. I retired from consulting work at 38 and currently help manage a small family owned real-estate business on behalf of all my siblings. I probably worked more hours in my 15 years of professional employment than most folks work in 30 years or even their entire career. But I had a lot of fun and I am thrilled to be in “partial retirement” at this stage of my life, and would rather be enjoying myself now and having to go back to work at 60 than the other way around… after all, doesn’t it always amuse you when you see a really nice car like a Porsche or Ferrari and the guy or lady behind the wheel is like 70 and on 6 different pills with breakfast? I think all folks should have a nice car from 20-30 and drive a Minica in their later stages…. but that is just me. At any rate, the announcement of the Kalamansi Marmalade winners brought up an interesting set of questions… WHAT DO MARKETMANILA READERS DO FOR A LIVING? I don’t mean to pry, but if you are willing to share your occupation, vocation, etc., I think it would be really neat to read about it… I can tell you that 60+% of you live abroad, and that on a daily basis, I have readers logging in from at least 75! countries around the world. I can tell you that you come from an amazing spread of ages (surprisingly so, actually) and you can see the data on the poll at right at the moment with 25-45 year olds making up a majority of readers. I can tell you many of you are pork lovers, freaked out by frogs and a few are vegetarians. I am hoping most of you agree with my owning a fish pan, and if you don’t, don’t even try to tell me off about it… At any rate, I think we would all appreciate it if you could share what it is you do or what your profession is… many thanks in advance!!!
Good morning, MM! With the way you speak, it seems that you are very one very satisfied person - with your accomplishments and your life, in general. I’m so happy for you because you truly deserve what you have right now! I wish when I get to your age, I’d be feeling the same way. ^_^
I’m a call center agent (but I’m looking for other jobs right now.) That’s why I get to read your posts as early as 6am. hehehe…
July 25th, 2007this is good….
I’m 42yrs old, works in a call center here in Cebu City. I was born and raised in Marikina City, has worked with different companies in the computer industry when I was still working in Manila, had my share of meeting quotas and dealing with pressure being a Product Manager of IBM. It was 1999 when I decided to just pack up and left Manila, went to Iloilo to look for a job and start a new life. Lucky enough, I’ve landed working in an ISP company and met my husband there who is a Cebuano, transferred to Bacolod for another job and finally decided to settle down here in Cebu City. I like my job now, being a Technical Support Rep, no pressures, no quotas and no reports afterwards. After my shift, I dont have to worry about anything anymore.
July 25th, 2007Hi MarketMan! Lurker here! I’ve been visiting your site for more than six months now. I came across your site while looking for a panna cotta recipe. I’m a Copy Editor.
July 25th, 2007Hello, MM! I’m a government employee at a fairly large department that handles government resources. I always make it a point to read your posts as soon as I get to the office, which is quite early (6:30 am). When I get my daily dose of Market Manila I’m all ready to get to work because I’ve had my fill of food, cooking and places you’ve been. Hope to see more interesting posts..
July 25th, 2007Hi MM! It’s always facinating to read your blogs. Everytime I get on the net I make sure I go to your site first.
Anyway I’m a Quality Assurance Engineer for a software company :)
July 25th, 2007I am a legal secretary for national and international law firms specializing in corporate/employer labor and employment law. I am thinking of retirement now but I still have a long way to go to be eligible for social security benefits.
July 25th, 2007Marketman,
July 25th, 2007I finished high school and 2 years of college in Manila but I obtained my degrees (bachelor and masters) here in the US. I am currently an officer/ombudsman for the Attorney General of Texas….have tons of work-but I love my job….someday -I also wished to go home-permanently….of course-balik sa Pilipinas.
I just stumbled across your site a couple of months ago — and now i am hooked! After checking what’s current, I go back to your back entries and i have a l-o-n-g way to go. I have only tried one dish - the buffalo wings which was your perk-up meal for the kid. My hubby liked it with gusto; one downfall however is my arm getting splattered with the hot oil. I am a novice when it comes to cooking; while i have been married for almost 18 months, it was only during the last 6 months that we have a place of our own. I was lucky enough to study for a semester in new zealand - i survived on cereals, fruits, cheese and ham sandwiches, and instant noodles during my 7 months stay - that sums up my culinary skills then. Your site, as well as others - pinoy cook, 80 breakfasts - showed me that cooking can be fun.
Re: your question. I am a civil servant, and have been with the same government agency for almost a decade.
July 25th, 2007Hi MarketMan,
July 25th, 2007I am a laboratory assistant in a research company here in the south of Luzon.
Interesting mix of people here..*waves hello to everyone*
Anyway I’m a Graphic Artist for a UK based charity. We feed and educate children from the dumpsites (Tondo, Navotas, Baguio and Bacolod) We have education programs for adults and livelihood programs for the community. We’re hands on so we get dirty, sweaty, stressed out and the job doesn’t pay well - but it is the most rewarding job I’ve ever had!
July 25th, 2007Earned my living working in accounting and management for thirty years, ran my own pastry shop in the East end of Toronto for five years and now lead a nomadic life between Canada and Southern Brazil. I also help promote the revival of the Philippine Guitar by writing about and helping publish Filipino classical music transcriptions for the solo guitar. I use a Bourgeat gratin dish for frying whole fish and polished chrome dumbells (that I can no longer use as free weights) for smashing ice and garlic.
July 25th, 2007p.s.
Go and have as many fish pans as you want, MM. You deserve it. I have art supplies that costs an arm and leg but heck, if my house burns down to the ground, the only thing I will save aside from my family - our pets and my precious art supplies. I don’t care if I have to balance my easel on my head just to save it :-D
July 25th, 2007Hi MM! A year ago I retired from being a Solutions Manager from an IT company and now manages my home with 2 kids.
July 25th, 2007Hello Marketman! Though I’m quite sad that I didn’t win a jar of your now famous Kalamansi Marmalade, I do love your posts and will hang around to read them everyday (& watch out for the next tambiolo contest…hehehehe).
After a 10-year stint in Corporate Training and Development, I traded my laser pointer with an apron. For the last 6 years, I’ve been perfecting my role as a domestic diva (read: stay-at-home Mom). I love having the extra time to experiment with food recipes I read on your blog and other foodblogs. My hubby and I do have a small business on the side (online english courses for Asians). Having been bitten by the entrepreneurial bug, we are always on the lookout for the next hit business we can get our hands on. Some of your posts have given us inspiration/light-bulb moments in our biz search.
Keep up posts coming…and here’s to more Marketman tambiolo contests!
July 25th, 2007hi MM– am a physician by profession (and am licensed to practice), but never really got around to doing clinical work. was with the management team of an HMO for five years before being recruited to my current organization, a corporate foundation that does health policy consulting for government, the private sector, and multilateral agencies. on the side, i do a lot of writing/editing for magazines and websites. oh, and lest we forget, im a weekend party-boy! ;-)
i love pork, am freaked out by frogs, and would never dream of turning vegetarian (though i adore vegetables, and have a slavish devotion to alukon in particular) ;-)
July 25th, 2007hi sir MM! I got hooked to your blog through Yummy magazine. I wish I could be a partial retiree at a very young age just like you. I’m a Biology teacher!
July 25th, 2007i’m a farmer based in ilocos norte :)
July 25th, 2007I’m a college instructor in Bacolod handling basic computer subjects. I usually find myself teaching students where the left and right mouse buttons are (harhar). On other days I teach them little tricks in MSWord such as using page breaks, the format painter, mail merge, find and replace and other stuff. Most of the time I let them surf the web and do research while I blog hop. I also do creative stuff. Painting, graphic design, layout, photography using borrowed cameras, writing, are some of the things I do. I’m also a partner in a small piggery with some friends and a few momma pigs and we sell the piglets before we give them cute little names and get too attached to them.
July 25th, 2007Hi MM! Been an avid reader of your blog for more than a year now. I’m a customer care officer in one of the real estate companies here in Manila. Keep the posts coming!
July 25th, 2007Hi Marketman. I’m a professional chef (I know,I know I’m just a glorified cook) currently based in Australia. I’m sure other readers would also like to read the other facets of your life (re: skeletons in your closet) Haha!
Wow! A readership from 75 countries! That’s truly fascinating. Just wondering, where’s the most far-flung reader from?
July 25th, 2007I absolutely enjoy your site, MM. I check this site once in the morning before I leave for work and upon my return. I often feed off of your creativity and have the same thing for dinner as what you had for lunch! I am a VP for JP Morgan Chase Bank (Consumer Division). To unwind for the day I blog hop between favorite food sites, decide whether I want to prepare a featured recipe, and walk the two blocks to Whole Foods for fresh ingredients. Thanks to your “pre-work” and other readers’ comments, I have had very gratifying meals indeed.
July 25th, 2007Hi!
am an executive secretary for an insurance company based here in alabang - our mother company is in spain. been with the company for 24 years!
love your posts….love your recipes…
thank you!
July 25th, 2007hi MM- I’m a fan of yours from Canada working full-time as an operations administrator for a real estate developer (shopping malls/office buildings) and runs a business on the side promoting medical tourism Philippines in Canada and retailing of bags & accessories made from recycled juice containers in Philippines.
thanks for sharing your experiences, expertise and everything else worth sharing.
July 25th, 2007I have wonderful memories of having been involved with puppet theaters (Asian and shadow plays) and toured the Philippines as well as other part of the world through them, met a lot of interesting and world-renowned artists/mentors, became an art instructor, pr writer and yes!…a children’s book illustrator. Now, having “retired” and married quite late to my “soul mate” :-), we lead a rather isolated life (by Pinoy standards) in the mountains, seek God in every way possible and learn a lot from each other—he being an engineer in thinking and I, the one who loves naming all the animals around :-)! But now, we have somehow taken on each others’ eccentricities..but I still don’t understand how an inverter works (hee-hee!) Hello, everyone! :-)
July 25th, 2007Ay, what a wonderful variety of readers! So when is the next Eyeball??? I’m a freelance development worker.
July 25th, 2007Been a lurker for about a year now since i started working last June. Enjoyed your blogs so much and the fact that you are Cebuano. I am a Graphic Designer who works for a retail company here in Manila and I’m 23 years old. I was born and raised in the Cebu also, loved your lechon blogs. Haha!
July 25th, 2007Hi,the previous 15 years I’ve worked as a cosmetics consultant of a company here in Canberra but when I had my youngest daughter I left that job and set up my own company so I can work from home.
That’s why I can post here sometimes hehehehehehe.
audball,whereabouts in Australia are you?Just curious :)
July 25th, 2007It was nice reading everyone’s work profile, what a diverse set of people we have here! As for me, I belong to the popular age group of MMs readers, currently employed in a small family business who is into photography. I do a lot of stuff from managing to marketing to sometimes actually being the photographer : )
July 25th, 2007i am an RN (Philippine and US licenses) teaching mass communication, my real love. in two years, i WILL begin advanced studies in health communication. i so look forward to that.
July 25th, 2007I’m still in mourning for not winning your contest. But anyway…
I’m a Quezon City based SAHM (stay-at-home-mom) who was previously an entrepreneur for 13 years. Traded in the whole thing to get married and have kids. Lately though, I have been forcefully thrown back into the business arena (by way of my dearly departed Dad) and am now learning the ropes of running a Mining Company with off-shore partners to boot. Whew!! That was a mouthful :)
July 25th, 2007How I envy your semi-retirement. I can’t wait to do that myself. Funny since I’m just in my late twenties. So there, late 20s, working as an advertising copywriter in a small agency. Slower pace than big agencies, but I like it since it gives me time to blog :D
July 25th, 2007Hello Market Man! I am truly enjoying your blog and its content. I live in Northern California . . . I “used” to be an Interior Designer for 12 years but the last 10 years as an admin. analyst and still at it. Argh! :-) I blog to keep in touch with thee familia back home in the Philippines as well as my friends here. Also, “blogging” to me is another form of therapy. :-) Oh well, I have to “attempt” to make your adobong pusit now. Hmmm . . . I’ll let you know if it turns out. Keep up the good work you do on your blog. Ciao . . .
July 25th, 2007I’m based in the Midwest now for many years, formerly a NYC resident (just like you). Educated in two worlds… a graduate of the University of the East in Manila, and of Old Dominion University in Virginia. Travelled all over Europe,the Mediterranean, the Middle East, The Caribbean, North Africa and Northern Asia for culture, cuisine and curiosity. But seriously, after all my madness is over, I would return to the Philippines for good, have a Condo in Makati or the Fort, a resthouse at the Beach and have friends and acquaintances for foods like MM cooks and displays on his website.
July 25th, 2007Hi MM! I love your site – very dynamic and fun! Love your recipes, found several great party menus that I’ll use for my upcoming birthday :)
I’m a Failure Analysis Engineer for a semiconductor company, a CSI type of job time for microchips.
July 25th, 2007i used to be a psychometrician in a private school when i was still in the philippines. now that i am waiting ( and trying) to finish my studies here in the states, I am working as a food attendant in a posh retirement place here, it’s a bummer cause we’re not allowed to accept tips, he he.
July 25th, 2007I’m a newly wed who loves to cook - I think I found your site sometime last year when googling recipes :) Other than that, I’m an interior designer by course and by license, but currently in web and graphics design :)
July 25th, 2007Market Manila is on top of my bookmarked pages but, lately, I am finding myself reading your blog even before I read the news. I do not know how you ever find the time to write as much as you do …. but thank you for all the wonderful recipes, pictures and insights.
I was previously a CPA and a certified information systems auditor with an accounting firm. I almost made it to partnership when I quit to get married and become an expatriate wife. We have lived in Singapore, Thailand, Hong Kong, and Japan. Now, in our 40’s, my husband and I are truly enjoying life as stay-at-home parents in Houston, TX.
July 25th, 2007I’m a call center agent. I hate my job, and hopefully I can stick it out until next school year. I’m just saving up so I can study music.
I love your site.
July 25th, 2007Hi there!
July 25th, 2007I was born in Mapandan, Pangasinan to a wonderful set of parents. My dad was in the US Army and my mom is a domestic engineer and was an excellent cook which I did not appreciate until I moved away from home. :-(
At 18 mos old, we moved to Oahu where my dad was stationed. When I was 5 years old, we moved to San Francisco and there I grew up until I married at 22 years old.
I now reside in ‘America’s Finest City’, San Diego, CA.
My 21 year old daughter attends UC Davis and I’ve been employed by the federal government as a Human Resources Specialist for the past 17 years.
I love reading different and interesting blogs. I’m nosy like that…
Thanks for sharing your adventures and most especially your recipes.
I work for the Canadian Embassy in Manila and I lust after your Viking stove.
July 25th, 2007Hi MM! I’ve been working for the mobile communications industry for 5 years now. I’ve also been a features writer, music critic, been part of the production team of several cable tv shows, and moderator of a TV chatroom.
Those are my jobs, but my career is professional eater :)
Hi everyone!
July 25th, 2007Hi Marketman!
I’m a big fan of your’s. I read your blog every single day, it’s part of my daily routine already. ;-) Hehehe.
Well, I’m a young lawyer (young being a passer of the 2006 bar exams) and I’m currently employed in a small Makati based law firm specializing in Corporate law, taxation and Labor. :-) Hehehe. Boring stuff, really. ;-)
July 25th, 2007I think I posted this in the other thread. Anyway, I was PR Executive before (in Manila) and now an expat wife in Korea. I am married to an American and we have two sons. I’m a graduate of Mass Communications majoring in Journalism and Advertising in La Salle University-Bacolod. I have lived all over the Philippines (Luzon, Visayas, Mindanao) because of my dad’s work assignments but I am really from Cavite City.
July 25th, 2007Hey. Avid reader but I hardly post. I work for a mobile applications and content provider as a senior writer and editor.
July 25th, 2007Hi, MM I really can’t remember how long I’ve been checking your blog on a regular basis. I found your site by accident, trying to show my husband how a makopa, tambis looks like. Needless to say, I was hooked since then, although I still blame you for the occassional cravings for makopa, santol, duhat and sineguelas. As for the fishpan, next time try fish fillets and deep friers. *sticks tongue out*. Frog legs are tasty but crickets cooked adobo is far tastier.
I was born in San Fernando (apparently a city now) in Pampanga, moved to the US in 1997. My main source of dough, I’m a licensed Physical Therapist that loves shoving lazy and unmotivated people off their beds, most especially if your lazy and unmotivated. I’m a Harry Potter nut and yes I’ve cried several times while reading the last book, that vile of a woman called Jo Rowling. Harumph!!!!!!
July 25th, 2007MM,
I’m a steel plant manager here in the fringes of Metro Manila. Would’ve wanted to try being a chef specializing in traditional Chinese food, or a man-whore, but it didn’t exactly worked out. :)
July 25th, 2007Hi MM, I’m an electrical engineer by education, currently working as a product and database manager for a Belgian owned manufacturer of automotive Hydraulic brake assemblies based in California, the only Filipino in this company of 250 employees. An avid reader of your site and occasionally submits short comments, though maybe not quite often enough. One suggestion, MM, write a book about all this. This is quite an amazing journal.
July 25th, 2007Have tried many of your tasty recipes & I’m very appreciative that you unsefishly continue to share them. I’m scared of frogs so it took me awhile to recover from the shock & to check out your blog again. Anyway, thanks for getting rid of the infamous frog shot! I’m a freelance artist, designer & illustrator. Thanks for the interesting topic & hello to you & your family MM as well as to all your avid readers!
July 25th, 2007i’m a former personal shopper from NYC who now lives in manila & is stay at home mom. i will soon be going back to work with my husband in our real estate company which specializes in property sales and related investment banking services. i really loved your new york posts. thanks!
July 25th, 2007Hi MM!
July 25th, 2007I’m a librarian and works for a research NGO (environmental research) in QC :)
Hi MM! I’m 37 mother of three working as a Flight Attendant for Cathay Pacific Airways. Like you I’m an obsessed foodie, found out about your blog through Mabuhay Magazine while travelling to mnl on PAL. Been on the job for 16 years now and looking forward to my retirement when I turn 40. So like you I have been hauling loads of cookwares, dishes etc. everything I could think of to stock up my kitchen…any advice aside from the all important Fish Pan???
July 25th, 2007Born and raised in Iloilo. Went to school in Iloilo and then Manila. Trained in university hospitals in Manila, Miami, Pittsburgh, Edmonton. Worked for a bit in the US, before coming back to las islas Filipinas become Associate Professor of Pathology.
Currently president of my professional society.
I dabble in some rare plants and photography to keep me same.
July 25th, 2007http://www.flickr.com/photos/likas_halamanan/
I love to eat and cook.
Hi MM!
July 25th, 2007I’m actually a 24-yr old fine arts student at UP. As for what I ‘do for a living’, I’m a raketeer extraordinaire: I write articles/take pictures for a broadsheet and some teen/tween magazines. I make (non-precious) jewelry, shirts and crazy accessories, and paint shoes.
Hello MM. I’m on vacation here in the Philippines and will be back in LA on the 2nd of August. I’m work as an ambassador and working for Royal Caribbean International for 17 years now and travelling all over the world.
Anybody wants to go on a cruise? I’ll take care of you and be my VIP just like what I did to Whoopi Goldberg, M/M Bush, M/M Clinton and even Vilma Santos, Johnny Litton and more.
Still I miss my simple life in the Philippines and eat turon, banana cue and guinatang bola bola.
July 25th, 2007I’m a software engineer working in Makati, dreaming of becoming a SAHM someday.
July 25th, 2007Hi MM. Wasn’t really bothered by your frog pictures. (Have tasted them and didn’t find them unique enough to crave for them again.) I work in the accounting department of a package tour operator based in southern California. Grew up in Makati, spent summers in Quezon province…came to the US after college.
July 25th, 2007Thank you for keeping up this blog !
Hi MM. Glad to see such a diverse set of people from all locations. The 9 to 5 thing was never really enticing for me. So I left my work and became an entrepeneur for the last 16 yrs or so (despite the headaches!). Apart from my business w/c now requires very little monitoring i am working full time as a financial consultant/underwriter for a british insurance firm. I also dream of being able to hit retirement soon like you and just devote quality time to my family especially our 2 kids.
July 25th, 2007Hi Marketman and everyone else,
I’m a mommy to an 18-month old and will be giving birth to my second, tomorrow :)
Professionally, I’m a Banker in one of the leading banks here and helps as a “consultant-marketing strategist-salesperson-letter maker-signatory” for my husband’s business which is into the point-of-sale systems.
Also, I love food… :)
July 25th, 2007Studied film/writing, found out I had no real talent in either, went home to Leyte to help out in the family business (retail), logged on to the intarwebs and found my true calling as a web developer (freelance, and truly anal about accessibility standards :p). Also gaga over my dogs (two labs, two strays)…
July 25th, 2007I’m an engineer working almost whole of my employment years as an ofw here in Saudi Arabia. OFW are heroes daw but basically just about everywhere I go we seems to be the toiler/lowly kinds. For one, just imagine we have to first queue outside the airport because we are ofws, and the queue are long because the POEA counter is not fully manned. I guess our government agencies like the POEA thinks that we are work bees na sanay na sa hirap that we don’t mind their lack of service! Sorry for the rant.
July 25th, 2007Systems Analyst here… sometimes computer programmer when duty calls.
July 25th, 2007I currently work for a school in Manila; previous jobs included marketing international education and college counseling, HIV/AIDS prevention program officer, esl trainer, and pizza/hamburger flipper at my college cafeteria.
I’m curious what people’s funniest/craziest/worst jobs were.
July 25th, 2007And yes, I would like to own a fish pan one of these days… :) I guess am just too lazy to fry fish even though I really love it. Takot ako sa tilamsik ng sizzling cooking oil, not to mention that it makes our house smell like fried fish for hours, even if the vent is on. So grill ko na lang si fish parati. Iwas tilamsik na, healthier pa. But I’d like to own a fish pan some day :)
July 25th, 2007hey MM! i thought i was the only underpaid slave of the family biz..but there you go =).i also manage our real estate firm for my siblings. hoping for a change though, 9 years on the job is a bit too long for me. that’s why i focus my excess energy on cooking, fish pans, table settings..
i’d also like to say hey to everyone. nice to know that despite the different fields and different countries, we have a common denominator, food! =)
July 25th, 2007I’m retired from USMC but presently working for US Postal service dahil kulang ang kita, pag retire ako ulit uwi na ako diyan sa atin baka kasya na yong kita ko.MM. Cebu ay maganda daw maraming seafood.
July 25th, 2007Hello, MM. I am a daily reader, and a long time lurker. I’ve posted a few comments in your site, but mostly enjoy reading the fascinating and enriching feedbacks from other readers. I was born and raised in the Philippines, got curious, drew lines on a paper map of the world and just got lost in it. When I settled, I decided to live and work in Southern California, commuting between Orange and LA counties.
July 25th, 2007I work as an HR Director most days, and part-time in film distribution, with special interest in European arthouse cinema. On my spare time, meaning out of my office, I attend school fulltime and currently attempting to finish my training as a psychotherapist. Call it a bit crazy, but I still find time to paint, work on my ceramics and cook a LOT! I dream of visiting home in time for one of your fantastic Eyeball events. When days are hectic,I find comfort in sinigang and abodo. I love the Philippines, I miss it sometimes. I know I am homesick when I cook up a scandalous batch of Filipino food (mostly obscure regional food that are not usually offered in the fastfood places around here). Hey! I am in SoCal, and Pinoy food is available in almost every area code, so I feel compelled to whip up something special everytime friends crave Filipino food. For that, I thank you. You’ve given me endless ideas and wonderful food notes to share on the table.
I’m a dermatologist who secretly dreams of opening a nice Filipino resto here in Toronto. I don’t own a fish pan (yet) but I’m in the market for one :-) Thank you MM for making me feel that Manila is not too far away. Toronto is a great foodie destination, but there are just some things from back home that cannot be replaced. Keep up the excellent work! BTW, you inspired me to start up my own blog. Thanks for that too :-)
July 25th, 2007one day, I got hit by a hammer in the head, and had this crazy idea of putting up a restaurant when I come back home, I hit search and your website keep on popping up. I was hooked. =o)
Hi Marketman,, Im 23, a PDA repair technician in Taiwan. Your pictures and recipes keeps me hungry. Keep it up.
July 25th, 2007I hold a 24/7 job. Perhaps the hardest job there is…Stay-at-home-mom to an almost 7 months old wonder (boy). I’m based in Dubai and was previously an Events & Meeting Planner for 4 years until late ‘06. I love good food (and a good blog) and was once googling for something until I found yours. It’s added on to my Favorites list and has become one of my most daily visited sites. You have such diverse readers coming from all walks of life, it’s amazing. You should publish a recipe book you know. And oh, I’m 27 yrs young ;)
July 25th, 2007Talaga Danney! I would like to go on a cruise. Kaya lang, in my experience, parang “kung mangarap ka’t magising” lang palagi. The only cruise adventures I can lay a claim on are a research cruise in college, the usual boat travel around the country and being a Bantay Dagat in Tungawan, Zamboanga Sibugay. Hahaha…and speaking of this exotic, exciting place that you must have heard more often these days, other fascinating places that have also been in the news like, Tipo-Tipo, Sumisip (and other Basilan municipalities); Payao, Tuburan, etc. in the Zamboanga Peninsula and Daram and Villaba in Samar, I have been to. Very exciting, very challenging, I tell you. Some of these I have already mentioned in my previous posts. As a coastal management practitioner and development facilitator, I get carried away sometimes. Like a simple idea that started with MM’s kalamansi marmalade has turned into one that has a very real possibility in my development efforts in partnership with the people (as well as appropriate organisations) and the local government(s) concerned.
Have only gone abroad a few times. But I have practically been all over the Philippines in the course of my profession. And my advantage over some of those in the same field, I thrive in unlikely places and dare go in and investigate and interact with communities in every nook and cranny of the area I am assigned in. And I mastered skills, apart from research, along the way.
Actually, in the past few years, I have been more a full-time homemaker than a paid professional. But a coastal practitioner and development facilitator I still am–pro bono nga lang. Hence, hirap financially (So malabong maka-join sa mga eyeball events.) but full of love and compassion still. Masaya, enjoy to read all of MM’s posts and interacting with other readers/site visitors.
Cheers to you MM and my co-readers.
July 25th, 2007I’m 23 and was born and raised in Lucena City, Quezon and now working for a below-the-line ad agency. I am into photography, painting, antiques and cooking.
Hope to build my own beach house someday and would definitely invite MM for a round of lambanog. Tagay!
July 25th, 2007I’m a wife and mom first and foremost, and a pediatrician by profession. Born in Cebu, went to Manila for med school, trained in NYC and now practicing in WA state! I have been fortunate enough to join a practice that understands why I want to work part-time :)
July 25th, 2007And wow, such varied interests and professions among your readers! Hi to everyone!
ello MM!
i was born in bacolod city, but now residing in Metro Manila. I work as technical support representative in SYKES Asia. and i have been an RSS reader of this blog.
July 25th, 2007hi MM! i’ve been an avid reader of your site for almost a year and a half now. Though ive never left comments before, i am truly, a fan of yours. I am 21, born and raised in manila, I graduated HRM from UST a year ago, took a one year break before looking for work and ended up moving to iloilo to help my dad run for mayor of his hometown in iloilo. Currently, i am part owner of our family owned restaurant here in iloilo, though i am still in search of what i am destined to do with my life. hehe. Do come for a visit when you’re here in iloilo. :) cheers.
The Mango Tree Restaurant, Iloilo.
July 25th, 2007I’m an OFW, stationed in Middle East, working in a Retail Industry as an Assistant Buyer,,used to work in a goverment office in Manila when I was a fresh graduate in college.
Great day!
July 25th, 2007a mother of one, ECE by license but working as a Tech support engineer in an antivirus company in QC.
a mountaineer, hiker, wannabe-biker and trying hard-to-be-a-runner.
a lover of good food, some drinks and lots of laughs.
trying(and failing)to lose the weight gained from having a baby and sitting too long infront of a computer.
wants to win the lotto so I can retire and travel. =)
Hello to all!
July 25th, 2007Training and OD Manager.
Life Coach
and NLP practitioner :-)
July 25th, 2007Ney ho! I’m a Consumer Credit Risk officer in the Asia Pacific Regional office in one of BIG banks here in Hong Kong. As I’m also a full-time “DH” of my husband, I make it a point to check your website everyday during lunch break so that I am updated with Filipino food and adventures. And yes, I’m also affected with the current exchange rate but anyway that’s life not that I am complaining. =)
July 25th, 2007Revving and burning tires in the rat race of fast paced Silicon Valley. Earning my keep as one of the Sales & Marketing lemmings for a vast high tech firm famous for its “garage.” Grew up partly in Davao but spent most of my years in sunny CA. Would love to follow your footsteps in retiring while young and hip… however the shackles of the valley is tough to break.
July 25th, 2007Hello, MM! I’m a marketer for a food manufacturing firm, and I’m based in Manila. I’m a foodie at heart. = )
July 25th, 2007I am a thirty-five-year-old family practice physician in Seattle. I spent the first four years of my life in the Philippines with my family while my father was stationed there.
My best friend of over twenty-five years is half-Filipino and can not cook to save his pitiful soul. His wonderful mother reintroduced me to Filipino dishes and has been keeping my belly very happy ever since.
My wife and I share many passions, with food (eating, preparing, sharing, and history) topping our list—a trait you and all of us readers here happily share as well.
July 25th, 2007Dutchman living in England. Trained chef but making a living driving a 44 ton semi. Interested in food, with a fondness for the south-east asian kitchen and specialising in Indonesian food.
July 25th, 2007Daily visitor and amazed at the amount of posts you manage to put out. Keep it up.
Thanks MM for initiating sort-of roundtable introductions!
Graduated AdMU in 1987 then moved to the US in 1988. Lived in SoCal, Honolulu-Hawaii, Austin-Texas, and now Portland-Oregon. Can you imagine the regional influences in my (and my family’s) tastebuds?
Been in the systems development/support tech sector all my professional life and currently serving as a Senior Manager in a global outsourcing company. My tech job then and now has sent me to many places. My favorite part of the travels — why, the meal allowance of course!
I love pork — most specifically I have been craving lechon lately. There is no convenient source in my area. (Thanks Anthony Bourdain for your No Reservations travel to Indonesia’s feature on roast Balinese pig!) I do love cooking, baking, and gardening. Friends and people at work have always raved about my creations. (Or maybe they just fear the consequences in the workplace…)
I’m amazed at the diversity and distribution of your readers!!! Maybe some meet-ups for those in the same area to do food crawls???
July 25th, 2007Greetings everyone!
July 25th, 2007I’m an artist and a college professor in Brooklyn, NY.
I’m ok with pork, I used to be a vegetarian (until I dated my husband), and I’ve enjoyed frog legs (in Bayombong, Nueva Vizcaya). I’d probably own a fish pan if I had a place to store it. NY: sooo little apartments, sooo many good places to eat!
hi MM!
i work as a sales analyst based in parañaque but would really prefer to just cook and eat! hehe..
July 25th, 2007Hey guys! I can’t believe I only stumbled on this site today. It really resonates with many of the things in my life right now–like finding great food, having great conversation with old and new friends, and discovering more of the world everyday. Ayos! Great site, keep it up Marketman.
Ay onga pala. I’m 31, female, writer. Mabuhay! (insert Ms. Universe pose here)
July 25th, 2007I’m a senior network engineer and I do network implementations for my company. The job involves quite a bit of travel - mostly around the US but also to Canada and Latin America.
When I grow up I want to be a full-time couch potato. :-)
July 25th, 2007MM, I am an avid reader of your blog. I am the President and General Manager of a Fifty Two Year Old Insurance Brokerage Firm in San Francisco. A Lot of hard work has paid off to be able to run and manage this company in a very White Male oriented industry. I was born in Mandaluyong, grew up in Hong Kong and went to school at Tulane University in New Orleans. I am what you call a hibernating gourmet, I can cook and cook well but only do so if a strange hankering strikes me which is about every six months. I love cooking gadgets from all over the world. Paella Pan from Spain stuffed in a suitcase. A tangine from Morroco hand carried carefully. A copper Tarte Tatin pan from Paris. The problem is I probably use them once if not at all. My garage is filled with Gelato makers, panini grills and other gadgets that gather dust. I do have a copper pan specifically used for poaching fish and that one I used more than once. MM, I am a great admirer and want to say thank you for the hours of enjoyment over the last couple of years that I have visted your site.
July 25th, 2007This is so interesting! I’m a graduate of UCLA (+ 1 sem of studying abroad at UP-Diliman). I work in the Customer Operations group of a fun dotcom based out of the Silicon Valley.
July 25th, 2007Hi MM, i’m working as consultant in a government office. Happy wife and mom and a great admirer of yours :)
July 25th, 2007Hi Marketman!
I worked as a Systems Analyst/Designer back when “IT” was commonly as “EDP” and the World Wide Web was just taking off in popularity. I left that to help manage the family business and am still involved with it.
Right after reading the local papers and checking out the CNN website, your website is the first in my daily checklist. Your various travel posts help me travel vicariously!
July 25th, 2007hello! 24, based in manila but will be moving to canada in two yrs. licensed chemical engineer.
science research specialist at DOST-ITDI. nature of the work basically involves helping micro-, small-, and medium-scale enterprises/industries (MSMEs) improve their production in terms of cleaner production, envi management systems, etc.
i was previously a research assistant in my university while i was taking my master’s degree in environmental engineering.
i’ll be transferring to an envi consultancy firm in two months time.
soon-to-be wife and someday… a mom (after 4 yrs pa sana :D ) i want to retire early as well (i hope!).
July 25th, 2007Banker for many years, then, retired or resigned? and joined my hubby in his company. He says I’m the BOB…boss of the boss. I own a fish pan and I love to cook for the men in my life. My youngest said I spoil them…with food! Actually, a strategy also to make them love staying at our home rather than the mall or other people’s house. I’ve tried some of your recipes…always goood!
What an interesting mix of professions but tied with a common thread…love for cooking!
July 25th, 2007I toyed with the idea of cooking for a living but never really got there. The closest would be a few orders for a couple of parties. I was involved with sales and marketing in the telecoms industry for 8 years, currently i work as a senior analyst in recruitment doing metrics.
July 25th, 2007I’m 25, a Biologist/Scientist by education but retired from it after a year. Chose not to take further studies in Medicine, I landed helping out our family owned business..food that is, but not for long. For the last 3 years I am in a telecom company doing marketing and consultation which requires work day & night..I feel old!! I am now torn between choosing a path back into scientific studies, take a scholarship grant in a Calif university plus a part time cancer researcher job or stay with telecom. Either way, it makes one feel old no?
Frogs dont freak me, it must be the other way around…I freak them out?!? I’m occasionally vegetarian, and pork is the least kind of meat I eat.
July 25th, 2007Hello Marketman.. I’m 23 years old working as an Account Executive/Liaison Officer in a financing company for almost a year now. My background is really in Marketing, but with my exposure in this Financing company, I am now interested to dwell into the complicated yet exciting world of Finance.. You can probably give me tips.. ;)
July 25th, 2007Parang nakakahiya nang magpakilala dito =P
Seen a lot of overseas readers here and great profession too. Anyway, I’m presently working as Marketing Asst in an Importer of Animal supplement based in QC. Baking and cooking is my passion since I was in younger years. I start getting serious about my baking ang cooking when I get married six years ago.
At least, may guinea pig ako…who will be always happy to eat all my cooks and bakes without any hesitation….=)
any takers?
July 25th, 2007OH MY GULAY!!! Almost 100 comments in less than 6 hours (a record pace I think) during the work day in Manila and while most folks in North America are still asleep!… Yahoo! You guys are too cool, such interesting jobs, such a wide spread of interests! Keep those comments coming, and a record 30% of you are commenting for the FIRST TIME, a great way to persuade lurkers to emerge from the woodwork! This is really cool… Maraming maraming salamat!!!
July 25th, 2007being a physician is my primary source of livelihood but being a parent to two lovely young girls is my real job.I am a herbivore and havent eaten pork for almost a decade now.
July 25th, 2007I have been a banker half of my life. I love to read food blogs (market manila is my favorite, of course) and food magazines, collect recipes and cook them sometimes, and best of all, eat!!!
July 25th, 2007I work as a trader in a stock brokerage firm :)
July 25th, 2007Corn-fed and Cebu-bred…I’m an architect, now living in Los Angeles(an amazing foodie town!)
July 25th, 2007Hi MM! I’m a director in a Media Sales/Consultancy firm :) I used to be a sales correspondent for the same firm which had me based around Europe for almost 2 years. I’ve also worked in a fantastic (ok, a little bias here) bookstore in Manila. My first job was with a bank. I’ve also written for a local magazine part time.
When I got married I made sure to register for a fish pan because of your post and I have not once regretted it! It is the exact same shape as a boneless bangus, one of my top fish to eat and a favorite of my husband too! :) It’s getting a lot of mileage :)
Certified pork lover here!!!
July 25th, 2007I’m 36 years old working as F&B Cost Controller in one of the de luxe hotels here in Makati. Your site is (1)like a wikipedia for new products I’m not familiar with, (2) helps in verifying food products in season or if available in the local market, (3) helps broaden our knowledge in recipes, and (4) appreciate your survey on grocery prices. On our 30-member association (HRCCAP), we compare prices, industry practices, menus, etc. I was thinking of inviting you one time as our guest speaker during one of our monthly meetings, if its fine with you. Thanks - Noel
July 25th, 2007Hallo! I stumbled onto your blog when I was looking for sources of Kaffir here in the Philippines. My family and I had cooking lessons in Thailand (obviously, we learned how to cook Thai food), and when we came back to the Philippines we couldn’t figure out where to get the ingredients or what substitutes to use. So, thanks to the Kaffir leaves, I discovered this awesome blog. Hahaha!
Like Yan-I, I’m a software Q.A. engineer for an IT company based in Makati. (Pretty boring…) I wish I could say something like…I’m a dive master based in Palawan. blahblahblah. Oh well. :P Hehehe I just graduated last year…lotsa time to do other things. By the way, this is my first job! hahaha!
Ciao!
PS: I am also depressed because I didn’t win the kalamansi marmalade contest. Darn it! I already had my menu planned. :P hahahaha!
July 25th, 2007Hi MM, I enjoy reading your blog and other food blogs out there. I work in financial services in HK and I love the variety of restaurants and food products available here.
July 25th, 2007hi mm. i am 34 years old, work in a bank but cook and bake during weekends. =)
July 25th, 2007I am a team lead for an IT company thats based worldwide. I thanks Marketman, Lorie of DessertComesFirst and Anton for openning my eyes to the different food places in the metropolis, I’ve also tried your recipes for chicken inasal and my family loved it. More power to your site.
July 25th, 2007I’m 24 and I’ve been working as a part-time call center agent in Marikina for 2+ years, after finishing BS Human Biology. Soon I will work as a medical proofreader in a transcription company. Those are my sidelines, as I am just waiting for the nursing board exam results coming mid-August.. hope I pass! :)
July 25th, 2007Hello, again. We are such a diverse and lovely bunch. So much love!! It’s very heartwarming just to read through all the responses. It affirms my belief that wherever I end up in this planet, may kapwang Pilipinong babati sa akin. I feel like I’ve been introduced to everyone in a great welcome party. Hey, MM! You really know how to throw a good one, even online. Look at what you’ve done ;). It was great reading a bit about everyone. Thank you guys!
July 25th, 2007Hi, MM! I’m 42 and worked in the last 5 years as aid worker, taking me to places of disaster and conflict in far-flung areas and having had the chance to sample various cuisine in my course of travels (work-related or not). Sad to say, I am not so impressed with western and central african food. Very much meat-based…Before that while there, I worked for an NGO providing health services to political prisoners and displaced refugees. I am currently on a break (almost 14 months now), re-discovering the kitchen in that time. Luckily, my partner is quite supportive and also loves to cook.
July 25th, 2007Human Resources Manager, dabbled in regional work and now back in Manila. Not much of a cook and bakes only sporadically but still, a daily visitor of Market Manila.
July 25th, 2007I’m from the UK (a kind of reverse OFW!) and have lived in different parts of the Philippines for about 5 years now - long enough to consider this wonderful country home. I work within the travel sector in Manila. My partner and I just had our first baby so we are very happy with life. Thanks for the blog MM, I found my way to it a year or so ago and have found it fascinating. This Englishman has learnt a great deal about food,local interests and culture from you and your readers and it daily increases my appreciation of where I live. I recommend the blog to all that I meet.
July 25th, 2007i’m a 25 year old public servant at the main office of the country’s biggest department. been working here for almost 5 years now. i love your site :)
July 25th, 2007am a free-lance trainer/consultant based in davao city. my work brings me to many places and many types of food all over. we have a small pastry shop and a baking supplies store here in this beautiful city that i so love.
July 25th, 2007Im a media planner/buyer working for a multinational media agency. I put the commercials on-air (TV-Radio) and on-print. You wouldn’t get to see those commercials without us. Hehehe
Im a certified foodie. and stumbled upon ur site and am addicted reading and drooling over it…Ü
July 25th, 2007I am 55yrs old and am managing a textile company that does fancy straps for the intimate apparel industry and we supply the major makers around the world. My factory is in laguna
July 25th, 2007I’m currently unemployed (and looking for a job!) and fresh from passing the April 2007 ECE Licensure exam. I’m a BS-ECE graduate of DLSU Manila.
July 25th, 2007Oh yes its Oh My Gulay MM, I bought the April edition of Yummy and I saw a pic of a man wearing a hat, yellow green pants, a nice white shirt hehehe, and that’s where I found your site, so I peeked and its nice…and now, I’m here, by the way, I work as an event organizer.
July 25th, 2007Hi MM,
July 25th, 2007I’m a long time lurker here in your site. I’m a PCB Design Engineer working here in Singapore. Originally from Bacolod City and worked in Cebu for 5 yrs before moving to Singapore. I always read your blog first thing every morning. God bless you and your family :)
Hi there! I am a lawyer by profession,currenly involved in a judicial reform project funded by the Canadian government. Started out looking for recipes for my very picky eater husband but got hooked on the non-food blogs, fish pans and frogs included. Currently looking for recipes for my 6 month old daughter about to start on solids; a post on “gourmet”(organic) baby food would be much appreciated :)
July 25th, 2007I have been reading your blog for a year already…and I am a travel agent=)
July 25th, 2007I am a meeting & event manager for an international law firm - I organize their annual and other regional meetings that are held in different parts of the world. My team travels to conduct site visits of the hotels where meetings will be held and meet with different suppliers and service contractors who work with us for our meetings.
July 25th, 2007So interesting, the job and geographical profiles of your readers!
July 25th, 2007I am based in HK, used to be a cook/caterer/consultant in Manila, became a stay-at-home mom for 2 years, and now work part-time teaching cooking and baking to kids in various schools. I also teach Pinay helpers (in Tagalog, which they think is cool considering most classes here are taught by people with funny, very distinct or difficult- to- understand accents!) . It’s fun, fulfilling, and allows free time to read great blogs like yours, blog a bit myself, spend ages in bookstores and gourmet foodshops, and have fun foodtripping with friends who are as passionate about food as I am.
I’m 21, studying Psychology in ADMU :) Sidelines: selling puppies and volunteering for a few organizations. Love your blog!
July 25th, 2007MM,
I’m a mainframe programmer!
July 25th, 2007my tokyo-based sister led me to your site. i grew up in hot and spicy naga but am now based in loyola heights where i study and teach. i am hoping to be ordained priest in april, on my 11th year in the society of jesus. i do daily text reflections for GOODNEWS 2346 mobile phone feature. “misa’ as well as “mesa” always gets our jesuit community together! spicier days ahead, marketman :-)
July 25th, 2007I’m a government lawyer here in the philippines
July 25th, 2007My career path was similar to yours- grew up in Quezon City, went to the US for college, worked initially for government, then an NGO, then a research firm, then various investment banks in four different countries, Hong Kong for the longest time. Spent way too much time in hotels and planes. Ate well almost everywhere but realized that there’s no match for Asian food! Quit the industry three years ago and moved to Spain for a long sabbatical. Got a phone call out of the blue from a friend of a friend recruiting me to move back to Manila and work for the government. I took it, and am still here, at one of the economic agencies. Thrilled to be back in the Philippines, but working for the government is the toughest thing I’ve ever done, and I ask myself all the time whether it’s worth it.
I miss Spanish chorizo, and the amazing food of Hong Kong, but love being able to eat spanking fresh bangus as often as I’d like.
July 25th, 2007I’m in my mid 30’s and a homeschooling mom. Just finished my master’s degree a year ago(after 10 years of being a housewife…tinkering in the kitchen, trying A LOT of recipes). I love what I do now(liking the subjects I hated 13 yrs ago from college)after I went back to school. I’M a “multi-task” crafter AND MY DAYS ARE FULL and I’m happy.
July 25th, 2007I’m 31, I supply hotel and restaurant furniture so eating out becomes a necessity.
July 25th, 2007Im a writer/editor by profession but life has forced me to seek a change (mostly because Im tired of being underpaid and I need to bring home my share of the bacon!). Many options, but still undecided as the what the change will be! Btw, Im a 32-yo mother of sons based in Manila.
I would love be an aid worker like nunasapunso. So noble and giving! I think I need the services of George the Life Coach.
July 25th, 2007I’m 57 years old . . . Office Manager in the telco subsidiary of a major utility firm in Metro Manila . . . with 3 happily married daughters who have given me 4 granddaughters in San Francisco, New York, and Connecticut (I call them my Benetton grandkids) . . . a son who works in the legal department of the same utility firm . . . and a husband who has retired from the same firm. When my son was 7 years old, he asked me to write down my recipes in a notebook that he labeled “Recipies of Mama” for his future wife and kids. I’d rather buy a cookbook or a kitchen gadget than clothes or shoes, which is why I enjoy your posts on fish pans and grape scissors. More power to you, MM.
July 25th, 2007UP law student here!
i literally have to read more than i can carry… your website offers much needed reprieve from all the codals and cases :)
July 25th, 2007im a corporate banking head of a large universal bank based in makati cbd…
July 25th, 2007Hi there MM! Well, let me sum it up this way: Industrial Engineer by profession, Senior Paralegal by vocation, Caterer by passion!
And thanks to your site, you provide me with new inputs and ideas for catering events and functions. Especially challenging here for me since my main thrust is to introduce the Filipino classic dishes to an international clientele. Washington DC is a such a hodge podge of culture and it is gratifying that my international clientele gets to learn and appreciate that there is food outside of Chinese, Japanese and Thai when one says Asian.
July 25th, 2007I’m 26 going to 27 years old. I homeschool my one and only child. I’m a medical office assistant by profession but homemaker by vocation. I’ll be going back to school soon (God’s willing) to get my associate degree in HIT health information technology. I’ve just move down here in the eat coast from west coast. Enjoying the summer and having a blast.
July 25th, 2007I’m 25,a Sociology graduate student and social researcher living in Makati. I’ve eaten grilled dragon flies with the Mangyans for merienda, ate unknown but edible vegetables to survive in the mountains. Lived in some small islands with fisher folks to research on youth. I adore obscure films (eg german silents), russian lit and intergalactic music. Oh, and I also sell shirts because I realized that Sociology could only feed my mind/spirit but not my body.
PS. I love you ensaidmada posts and your single use implements. Damn, I envy the winners of the kalamansi marmalade!
July 25th, 2007Hi MM!!
I’m a Records Officer for a NSW govt agency in Australia. I used to work as an Executive Asst to an oil company prior to migrating to Australia.
July 25th, 2007As everyone else, I’m an avid fan and there is not without a day that I don’t read your column. Cheers, Gina
Hello MM, Im 36 yrs old married with a 6yr old makulit son and my wife is 7mos pregnant with a baby girl (hope they read the US accurately.) Im a cardiology/oncology nurse @ the university of michigan hospital. born and raised in naga city and my dad is from cebu. I love reading your blog everyday. cooking is my passion and maybe Ill open up a small turo-turo joint before I retire..reading your blog gives me the inspiration to do just that. thanks.
July 25th, 2007i’m an ic mask layout engineer, just learned how to cook when i got married and left for ireland almost seven years ago…….
July 25th, 2007i’ve been reading your blog for 4 months now and i’ve been “tuning” to it everyday….you’ve grown on me na.i’m a FTM - full time housewife. in between cooking, running errands, etc i squeeze in checking out your blog.
July 25th, 2007Hi MM,
I’m 25 Years old. Graduate of Hotel and Restaurant Management. now working in one of the biggest call center in Makati. I’ve been a reader of this wonderfull blog for almost a year. so there… More power! :D
July 25th, 200727 years old… medical resident down south… :)
July 25th, 2007Currently in mourning after having to move into an oven-less flat. I’d kill to have a fish pan.
Worked as a talent caster for JWT and as a producer/writer/director for Batibot and Nickelodeon back in Manila. Now working for an international school in Shanghai as a teacher.
July 25th, 2007Hi MM!! I am 31 years old, based in NJ and work as an exec asst to the Investments Director of a large foundation. Been in the US for 7 years. You are my first website of the day when I log in at work. I love reading your posts!
July 25th, 2007Worked as a physical therapist for a year. Currently working as copy editor. Hoping to be a SAHM soon.
July 25th, 2007Say, Marco, from what company are you?
im now a SAHM… working part time from the home for my Brother in law’s business. i am a teacher by profession and i also worked with my dad for the family business when i was still in Manila
July 25th, 2007Hi MM! Ive been reading your blog since January. I really enjoy your posts. Im a doctor practicing in the south of manila, mom to 2 kids… and I don’t have any idea how to cook or bake. I just love watching cooking shows and reading food blogs like yours. I hope to somehow try it out in the future.
July 25th, 2007Hi MM
been a lurker on your site for quite some time now. i’m 31, from Toronto Canada and a technical writer for an insurance company. I started visiting your site because i figure it’s about time i learn how to cook filipino food seeing as my is getting to her golden years. Seems that i could cook everything BUT filipino food. Luckily that’s changed now!!
July 25th, 2007I’m 24 nurse here based in ILLINOIS.I work in a Oncology Unit in Hospital. I’ve been reading your blog for more than a year now and this is my first time to comment.I love your website nawawala ang pagka homesick ko kahit kaunti.Thanks again!
July 25th, 2007THANKS for doing this, MM. Always wondered what your readers do. And thanks too, to Apicio! Next to MM’s posts I enjoy reading your comments the most!
I’m originally from the university town of Los Banos, Laguna and now work as a special events manager for Penn State.
July 25th, 2007i’m 31, mother of four,
July 25th, 2007school canteen operator/ semi educator,
a certified foodie and gourmand wanna-be!
I’m database administrator for a company in Virginia. I come to your site to check what’s new in Manila and relay it to my relatives who are in the Philippines.
July 25th, 2007Hello everyone,
July 25th, 2007I’ve been a lurker here for a time,then managed to post messages twice and that’s it.(It’s because I’m too lazy to write )Like everybody, I’m hooked!
I’m a stay at home wife and mother of a thirteen yr.old girl. I taught for ten years in private schools in the Phils,till I met my French hubby
I have been living here in France for 17 years now but I sometimes dream too of having a simpler life back home(PI)eating green mangoes and bagoong.
Many thanks MM for all the wonderful posts, what would I read if you stop?
I’m an IT consultant based in Singapore, specializing in SAP.
July 25th, 2007Everyone seems to have an exciting life!
I already want to ask about the cruise, the resto furniture, the rare plants and the online writers.
Hi MM. I’m a lawyer by profession but I quit that rat race. I am now a project coordinator for a BPO. I dream of being a stay at home mom and baking dreamy cakes.
July 25th, 2007I’m 42 years old, a CPA-Lawyer, VP-Legal of a multinational company in Ortigas Center. I like eating especially in restaurants but I do not know how to cook!!!
July 25th, 2007doctoral student (theology) on the East Coast; reads blogs to procrastinate :-)
July 25th, 2007I moved to the US in the early 90’s. I have a degree in Anthropology and historic preservation from the University of Pittsburgh. I worked in academic advising and admissions committee for a large univeristy for a total of 7 years.
I am changing careers and decided to follow the footsteps of my father, mother, and sister to become a doctor. I’m currently taking post bac pre med courses. I am planning to begin medical school in Manila in June 2008. My wife and I are looking forward to living in Manila for 4 years while I get through medical school. Hopefully one day we can attend on of the Market Manila meets.
I found this blog while looking for dinner ideas a couple of years ago. Thanks Marketman.
July 25th, 2007Another lurker here. I mustered the courage to make a single post in the past 6 months. 44 yo/F/M/Cebu. CPA (Phil and Illinois) worked in the US for 5 years before throwing in the towel and relocated back to Asia. ANother year in Japan before deciding to finally settle back in Cebu - (there IS JUST NO place like HOME). Current job:Controller
July 25th, 2007Just wondering, if I’ll be the last post of the day (at 10:15 pm - Phil. time). Do I get the last bottle of Kalamansi Marmalade probably sitting at the back of your cupboard MM? (I can see you shaking your head- hmmm I knew that was a long shot)
Patrick , I hope you pass your Nursing exams. And to naghihingalo - it must be difficult to constantly motivate yourself but where would we all be if we don’t have special people like you who are willing to do public service? Aside from our OFW’s to me there are a lot of unsung heroes in government. Sincere and hardworking. We just don’t get to see or hear from them. Whatever it is you are doing for all of us, thank you.
MM, I can never thank you enough for … well, everything.
MM,
A long time reader since I read about your site from an INQ7 article. Born and raised in Laguna, immigrated to US after graduating from UST and now live in Southern California (LA area). I am 41 years old and an IT Programmer/Analyst for a hospital chain. My wife is a an accountant and a Controller for a copier company. Lucky enough to work 2 ½ miles from home. Used to be an IT Director and consulting (consult when I want to and no travel clause) but had to slow down when we had 2 girls and 2 boys (18 year old college student, 14 year old high school freshman, 10 year old 5th grader and a 5 year old kindergarten). I was planning to retire at 40 but somehow the children’s education (all in private school) became imperative. My wife and I emphasize the importance of education to the kids because we consider this as our inheritance to them that no one else can take away.
Cooking and gardening is my passion. Love your recipes and tried them at home for the family and friends. Missed my Nanay’s home cooked meals. She wrote down some of her recipes for me when they went back to retire to the PI.
Jr.
July 25th, 2007hi all! i’m a pediatric occupational therapist =)
July 25th, 2007I work for a local bank but was a stay-at-home mom for a couple of years. During that time, I was able to spend more time in the kitchen.
July 25th, 2007I’m a chef,I cook it and he eats it:)I have been living in Australia for the past 30 years and loving it! To be a fully-blown-Aussie,you have to eat 10 blow-flies,but I have only managed 7 so far,hahaha!:)
July 25th, 2007I’m a 35-year old writer/managing editor of a newsletter.
July 25th, 2007I bake using cake mixes.
I’m a systems analyst in one of the biggest airlines here in the US with an ambition to be an SAHM soon. I moved here Nov ‘96 after working for a software company in Manila for three years.
I discovered your blog just a few months after you started it and have been hooked ever since. I’m was lurker until now. I love your adobo recipes as well as your features on your different travels most especially your travels around the Phils. I hope to go to those places one day when I have the time and money to do so. My cookbook collection has grown also because of you ;-).
July 25th, 2007I am an avid reader, even on a very tight project schedule(like now) I still find time to read your posts. I am an IC layout engineer working in UK for more than 6 years now.
July 25th, 2007oh my… chief stewardess, crew cook, purser helping on deck when needed…jeeves a jack of all trade.
studied politics and international relations in Greece, Cebuana and a proud one!!!
Blogging every where in the med
July 25th, 2007Hoping to do open some kind of training for future stewardesses or housekeepers how to do silver service, do proper laundry, butler jobs.
30-yr old high school teacher in inner-city Los Angeles, CA and loving it.
July 25th, 2007Wow! What a wealth of experience you have here at your fingertips. Great idea MM! I was once a brand manager for fragrances and cosmetics for Rustan’s in Manila. Now I am a paralegal for a boutique (that’s what they call firms of our size here in the US) law firm in south NJ.
July 25th, 2007Hi MM, I love your blog. I currently work for the LVMH (Louis Vuitton Moet Hennesy) Group of Co. as their regional makeup artist.
July 25th, 2007Nice, I can do the same thing you did, retire at an early age.
I’m living in Edmonton Alberta and I stumbled unto your webpage while looking for Pinoy blogs to appease my home sickness. Luckily I saw your Palawan Market article and from there on I kept on coming back to read your blog. Oh! and I work as an IT Support, but i’m a fine arts grad.
July 26th, 2007one more lurker, flushed out again…
July 26th, 2007am a 34 y.o. banker and mom of 2 girls, originally from manila, now based in iloilo.
katherine of The Mango Tree, love your restaurant, though i havent been there for a while =D
Oh my, oh my….this is the only blog I read and I’m very proud to say that the participants seems to be all very decent individuals. I had fun seating in front of the computer reading all what people do for a living.
July 26th, 2007I’m 48 years old, a very successful nurse lives with my family in the state of Connecticut. I always say my prayers everyday especially when I’m driving my Mercedes Benz and BMW. I thank the LORD above for giving me such blessings. Life is too good for me, can’t ask for more.
Hello MM. I also worked for a large financial institution (a subsidiary of which was the subject of a previous MM rant, think: credit card - but before i get some raised eyebrows from fellow readers let me just clarify that i was with another business and not with ‘bank’) which goes to say that i too had a share of how it is to sometimes work 15-16 hours straight, 10 hours on a ‘usual’ day.
im an engineer by education but always imagined myself becoming a poet and novelist.
currently, im a business solutions consultant of a US software development company.
bottomline is, im 24 and im really not sure what i am and been doing. =D
July 26th, 2007a daily reader of your blog, but first time to post…. Economist by degree, but a Corporate Sales Manager (aka corporate slave for 12 years) for a multinational pharmaceutical company before retiring at 34 in 2006. Now I do freelance management consulting, and executive and life coaching. I am also afflicted with a disease called itchy feet, travelling has been one of my passions. And I am learning how to cook. Your blog is a sui generis!
July 26th, 200