I have always been scared of the kitchen and insecure about my cooking skills. Yesterday, the world’s noodle king, Chef Liu Zheng Hsiung of the Lao Dong restaurant chain in Taiwan, taught me how to cut cooked beef strips like a pro and I am happy to report that I survived! 

The charming Chef Liu is in Manila on a 5-day visit to train Chowking chefs in making greater tasting beef noodles, his specialty. (Chowking entered into a joint venture with Lao Dong three months ago as part of the Jollibee Group’s global expansion strategy.)

Chef Liu deftly handed me an ominous-looking chopping knife and made me hold the handle as if my life depended on it! It was a little bit ouchy, but I got the message, even though he spoke only Mandarin. Then lo and behold, before a hungry group of media people and food bloggers, I cut my teeth into the cooking industry.
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(Photo courtesy of Aladdin Cordero)

Many of us choose schools for our children based on proximity to our houses. Bad idea.

I wasted more than P10,000 after I enrolled my son in a “Montessori” school on Visayas Ave. But that’s not even my biggest regret. The school had horrible teaching staff, hidden fees and they forced 6-year-olds to do cursive writing and count up to one million –- in summer class before the actual school year. I checked with Education Secretary Jesli Lapuz and he said that was not the prescribed curriculum for this age group because they are not yet pedagogically prepared for such tasks.

After three days, my son became depressed. Can you imagine a depressed 6-year-old child? After the second day, he told me he didn’t understand why he was shaking in school when the Grade One teacher forced him to finish the writing drills. I remember thinking then that I could kick myself for not investigating the school before enrolling him.

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(Photo from Agence France-Presse)

Two of my girl friends and I went on a different kind of bonding trip recently. Off went our strappy sandals and on came our boots and sturdy walking shoes to check out fruits and vegetables in the Balintawak market in Quezon City.

Both Jenny Angoluan and Analy Pinaroc are busy moms with husbands and children who love vegetables and fruits, and with prices skyrocketing, the three of us thought it would be fun to see how the prices differ. Jenny’s husband waited two hours in the car for us, but loved the veggies.

Here’s the price list. Feast your eyes!
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Ask me for horror stories about maids, yayas and house help and I could go on for hours –- all based on experience. But from time to time, many of us come across genuine beings that sacrifice personal comfort to give service that would beat the best hotels. They would provide companionship and even understanding of our idiosyncrasies, break a fight or wipe a tear from our children’s faces when we can’t be there for them, or even shield us from hateful neighbors.

I have known exemplary house help who put their lives on voluntary suspension to take care of their employers’ meals, homes and children. They do not date, ending up single for the rest of their lives. They don’t nurture friendships since security is a very valid issue especially in Metro Manila. They see their families only once a year, even occasionally missing that visit to a far-off home when the need arises. When we travel abroad or leave the country for good, admit it. They are one of the first we miss the most: no more beds that get made up in the morning, almost as if by magic.

It is but fair to treat human kindness with the same. And truth be told, there are horror employer stories that would make children-exploiting Nike executives blush. Uncomfortable beds, rooms with no privacy, more than 14-hour working days for pay that’s good for five, zero benefits but a lot of curses.

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UPDATE: Editor’s note: Added video of Abby Sarmiento taken by INQUIRER.net business editor Ma. Salve Duplito.

Filipinos spend too much on staying connected. When you don’t text, you’re not a good friend. When you don’t call, you’re a bad daughter. Husbands know full well the wrath of a woman untexted.

These days, cutting costs will have to include taking a second look at alternatives to the high cost of getting connected. In our household, only my 7-year old and the toddler don’t incur costs. There are six mobile phones in our household (two for the hubby), a landline and a DSL service.

This should be interesting for financial voyeurs . On a monthly basis, this is what we pay telcos :
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Stephanie (not her real name) looked a bit like a lost little girl, no different from her eight-year old daughter who transferred to my son’s school. Turns out that it was her first time to attend a school activity. She has been at sea on cruise ships for the last 15 years, going home only once a year – one of 230,000 sea-based Filipinos working abroad.

We had a lengthy and very interesting discussion about what it was like at sea for the past 15 years, starting from when she was a fresh graduate of Hotel and Restaurant Management from a reputable school here in Metro Manila, up until she decided to get pregnant (but not get married) and now that she is waiting for her call to join the crew of another cruise ship.

Stephanie’s story amazed me, although it was not the first time I had heard of the challenges and experiences of Filipino sea-based workers. She told me how Filipinos earn anywhere from $2,000 to $4,000 a month, bulk of which come from tips from passengers. She also described how Filipinos burn their money buying clothes, bags, laptops that they never get to use, mobile phones and other techie gadgets from different ports even when these could also be bought in the country at the same price or even cheaper.
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I can spot them 50 feet away — mommies with not a single strand of hair out of place, carrying tiny handbags, and with fingernails done to perfection. Mommies who are slim, trim, and confident. Sometimes, I wonder if I decided too early to be a work-at-home mom.

Think big, bulky, baby bags and endless trips to the pediatrician. Gone are the regular trips to the parlor for hair spa and I have long since traded my strappy sandals for comfy ToeBerries.

While interviewing Education Secretary Jesli Lapus at the sidelines of a conference last year with the World Bank senior guy looking on, I saw him eyeing my notebook suspiciously after I turned a page to take down notes. The entire spread was full of scribbles made by my two-year old son. Using a big-point permanent marker, I might add.
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(This piece is written by Bianca, one of the readers of MoneySmarts who has been chosen for the one-year Money Makeover challenge by INQUIRER.net. Bianca’s real identity is confidential, so that MoneySmarts can share her family’s financials and the lessons she has learned with the rest of the world. Read more about Money Makeover here.)

I am stumped.

I had been meaning to write about our recent family trip to Hongkong and Macau. As a matter of fact, my computer bears the digital imprints of so many lines and pages written. But for the life of me, I could not strike the “send” key. It struck me why one night. I never could justify – even to myself – why we did it. A family undergoing financial overhaul simply does not go on trips. What example would I be? What message would I send? The shudders would not stop (even as I grin at the memories).

But, hey, we did it. And it, oh, set us back a few months. But there were valuable lessons we learned along the way.
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Based on our poll last week, MoneySmart readers who responded paid P1,179.79 per person per month for electricity. It appears that I am paying less than most of you at P850 per person, but my dears, I wouldn’t complain if my electric bill goes even lower!

So I searched the Internet and found myself cross-eyed at all the power-saving tips out there. Thing is, am I serious enough to follow through on those tips? Are you?

For example, I have been meaning to replace our 13-year old refrigerator with a newer one that’s more energy efficient but have been dragging my foot because I didn’t want to shell out cash. Silly, I know. Some cash outlay in the short-term, but more savings in the long-term! But isn’t it true we lose money everyday on unreasonable and silly things? One day drags into weeks, and my dillydallying may allow my refrigerator to live for yet another year. As with many personal finance issues, action speaks louder than words.
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From 2008 to 2010, official estimates show that Filipinos will need almost two million new homes for families that are either currently renting, living with their parents, or are just about to start a family. Many will most likely be bought through bank financing.

For those who are in been-there-done-that mode, you probably know how easily a dream home can turn into a nightmare. Johnny Noe Ravalo today tackles several issues that most homebuyers find out only after the move.

Do you build the home yourself, hoping to find a hassle-free contractor, or go for a house ready for its new occupants?
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