I did not order steak.

Through the years, people from different countries have established their own cultures that have defined them, made them unique. Chopsticks will always be attributed to the Chinese (at least that's what I know) and the Italians will always be remembered for pizza (again, that is what I know). Some habits or practices I can understand, some I find funny, others just outright questionable.

I was at a very popular coffee shop the other day, and I ordered a classic spam sandwich which, I told the barista, I would be eating there. I was asked to wait for my name to be called as they were going to warm the bun. Lo and behold! With my warmed sandwich came a fork and a knife. Time seemed to stop for a second as I stared at the tray. What in the world do I need a fork and a knife for???

I was itching to go into mataray mode and sarcastically say “Miss, I did not order steak,” but held my tongue for obvious reasons. So instead of asking the barista what the cutlery is for (which I am wont to do each time I do not understand something), I just took the tray to my table. But I still could not get myself to use the knife, let alone the fork. The sandwich was not hot enough to burn your fingers and warrant a tool to hold it with.

Was I missing something here? Was there a practice or an etiquette that I was not aware of? Was there a new "proper way of eating sandwich?"

In the end, I just did what was expected - held the sandwich with a paper napkin, brought it to my mouth, and bit. 

Caught red-handed!

Oh my goodness! The hospital attendant in charge of delivering patients' rations caught me eating the food meant for the patient. I was about to put another spoonful into my mouth when he came in. Caught red-handed! And worse, I acted on instinct, lowered the spoon and said " kain tayo!" (let's eat!) ang gave him an innocent smile. The smile must have caught him off-guard, but I guess he was used to seeing food rations being downed by people other than the patient.

It was not delicious, by the way. Hahaha!

NOTE:   I was supposed to post this in Feb 2012 but I can’t remember why I never got around to doing  J

Yellow. Then Blue. So What’s Next?

So much has already been said and written about this, and I don’t want to jump into the bandwagon. But I cannot help writing about how I feel towards the idea because I just have to get it out of my system. It’s really annoying, you see. I am talking about the motorcycle lane along EDSA, which the MMDA thought could solve the problem with motorcycles that travel along the great avenue.

I know that the MMDA meant well when they decided to enforce a motorcycle lane. But with all due respect, did actually think about the pros and cons when they decided to enforce it?

I have taken the EDSA route going north at least 30 times in the past two months. I have tried to convince myself to try it out before lashing out. But no amount of self-convincing could make me award pogi points in favor of MMDA. Why? Because despite assigning a motorcycle lane which was primarily meant to give priority to motorcyclists and prevent them from zigzagging in between cars and tight spaces, I almost hit a motorcycle that appeared out of nowhere – in three separate occasions. 

First, we had the bus lane, which the MMDA designated the color yellow. Rules say buses, whether travelling or picking up passengers, should stay on the yellow lane. But is it followed? Oh, puhleeeeeeeeeeeeze!!! Buses have occupied the third, even the fourth lane – right in front of MMDA officers. So much for having the EDSA 500 (or was it 300?) and the Constables. The buses just freely passed right in front of them.  $#@*!!!

And now the blue-colored motorcycle lane, which has not really served its purpose.  So what’s next?

It all boils down to the fact that the special lanes for these “special” people with their “special” vehicles did not serve their purpose. We did not need a motorcycle lane in the first place. What MMDA could have done was to enforce simple logic – that motorcycles, though skinny compared to your usual sedans and SUVs, should still conduct themselves on the road as if they were regular vehicles, similarly sized with cars and AUVs. Think about it – when a red car wants to overtake a blue one, the red car keeps a reasonable distance from the blue car, enough for both drivers to see and realize each other’s intention and respond/react accordingly. Well, that’s generally speaking. I know there are crazy drivers out there who have total disregard for traffic rules and common road courtesy. But when motorcycles overtake vehicles – they stick too close to the vehicles they want to pass, simply because they think they can squeeze and fit into tight spaces, not realizing that they are putting themselves and the other vehicle at great risk. These motorcycles just pop out of nowhere, and it drives me mad. Why, just this morning, still along EDSA, two motorcycles running between cars – right on the blue and white demarcation line!!!

Instead of coming up with all sorts of ideas that apparently have not been thought of very well, why not go back to the basics and instill discipline, be more strict in issuing driver’s licenses, do spot checks, and actually go out and catch traffic violators.