Careful, it Bites!

One morning at work two weeks ago, I found a pretty package on the computer desk. It was a key biter, a gift from my boss, whom we fondly call Dra (doktora) Kat.







We hardly see each other at work (in the complicated world of medical research, we only have to on certain occasions) but we try to communicate as often as possible via e-mail.
All of us girls at the clinic got one, actually. And just when we thought there was really nothing special about it (except that the gifts looked expensive), we were moved by each handwritten note that came with the gifts. Each card reverberated with warmth and concern. We realized she took time to sit down and think. About us and making our day. Yeah, she did.




Speaking of bites, my husband and I decided last friday to have dinner while waiting for the traffic coding scheme to break at 7pm. We went to the newly-opened Conti's Bakeshop branch in Nuvali, just off the road in Sta Rosa Laguna that leads to Tagaytay.

We never really liked dining al fresco, but this time we did since the place seemed so inviting. So far, it's the only dining place in the area, so it's relatively quite and peaceful compared to the al fresco dining areas at malls. Plus, there were no smokers seated near us so hurrah!

Our simple dinner -


carrot coriander soup - (refreshing, but it was almost at room temperature when served)


baked new zealand mussels (extra large, extra garlicky and loaded with creamy cheese - yum!)


chicken ballotine (creamy yet light - perfect!)


and of course, noy's favorite blueberry cheesecake. they serve it frozen here with caramel on the side.



for some reason, we almost always have calamansi juice when dining out. for me though, it quenches the thirst and cleanses the palate at the same time, without the ugly burping that sodas give (that's from a coke light fan, huh).

I Live in a Clinic

Hello, my name is Anne. That's what most people call me. To my husband and family though, I am Nene. I can almost see your smiles and quizzical looks but that's just how it is. I just turned 30, married with no kids (yet).

I am a doctor and I live in a clinic. I just realized the truth in the second half of that sentence a few days ago.

You see, my husband is a doctor too. We are in this business called moonlighting. Somehow after passing the boards we found ourselves in this province called Laguna, where we are now working as GPs, or general practitioners. We do not have a "specialty". It's a personal choice, because we are planning to go take our expertise somewhere else.

Noy, my husband, goes on duty at a lying-in clinic in Cabuyao Mondays 6 am through Fridays 6 am. That's 96 hours straight. Doctors out there, especially the moonlighting ones, would understand why this is possible. He gets to sleep of course, sometimes a full 6 hours if he likes. Only a handful of patients would come at unforgiving hours.

I, on the other hand, work as a research doctor in Calamba - office hours only. Since I have no one to come home to, and since Mandaluyong (where our real home is, but where we get to stay on weekends only) is still quite far from Calamba at this day and age, I chose to "sleepover" at my husband's clinic while he's there. It's cheaper because I'm not paying for the services that I use - water, electricity, wifi, airconditioning. The owner is quite assured of the fact that she's got two doctors on duty 4 nights a week while paying only one. Hey, I'm a big help, FYI. A lot of female patients prefer female doctors, and allow me to say I have quite a following too :D.

So there, I live in a clinic. It really is comfortable at night when it's just us and the secretary/cashier/nursee/whatever-she-likes-to-be-called ate and everybody else has left. We lie on the examination tables and watch TV, eat dinner in the laboratory, read books and magazines amidst piles of medical records, surf the net until 4 am or when a pregnant patient is about to deliver whichever comes first.

That's why we get to do some blogging while at work. Well at least I do, since Noy mostly plays games. Now, though, I am enjoying this maiden (emphasis on the word. :P) issue. Im having fun and I hope you are too.