Tiffin, Lunch Boxes, Baon

I cooked my own food and i bring my own lunch to the office. What "baon" in the Philippines is Tiffin here in Bangladesh/India/Nepal. And just recently or maybe it was last year, i discovered "Bento Lunch Boxes"... and now, I always try to make "bento lunch box"...and even told H that I will make his tiffin box like a bento box :-)

I'm not perfect in making Bento lunch meal yet, but i'm doing it my own style. And everytime I go home in the Philippines, I always try to visit Saisen to buy more food separator, picks, and other bento making tools :-) So, here's my simple take-on for bento lunch meal.

I'm a little hoarder...thinking of buying another tiffin box....

My New Boyfriend :-)

Finally, my dream came true after so many years :-) I bought it recently when I went home for vacation and it was another adventure with my UST friend Mika to Hidalgo.
This means, I will seriously learn more photography tips and tricks. How i wish there are also photography class/session/seminar/trainings here. I named the camera "Derek" to poke H :-)

The Lingo of Expiration Dates

In this part of the world, it's hard to find certain food items and ingredients that are not locally produced or locally patronized. There are lots of food items that you need for certain cooking or baking or even for your sudden bout of cravings but will not be readily available as they are imported goods. Most of the imported goods are not consistently available also, so sometimes if you see something, you just have to grab and buy it or miss the chance next time and who knows when are you going to see that food item again in the groceries or in the market.

I already experienced this things, that's why I'm a hoarder. Sometimes it's good but then there is also a downside because sometimes I end up with expired items and will just have to throw them away with a heavy heart as I didn't get the chance to use or try them. Really, when is a canned food/processed food safe to consume and when it is time to toss them away?

There is a difference between "Expiration Dates", "Best Before Date", "sell by date" and "Use by date". The first three, if I understand it correctly are more of "manufacturer's code" so that they know when are they going to pull it out from the grocery shelves as the quality is not at its peak anymore. After all, you should always give the best quality to your customers, so you have to know when a product is not at its highest quality anymore. Best before" is advisory (the food is best before that date, it's up to you if you want to eat it after that). while "Use by" isn't advisory, it's "throw it out after that date, you shouldn't eat it".

The following are some guidelines from this site

Food

Beer
Unopened: Starts to lose flavor after 110 days.
It’s best to store bottles in boxes, and then in dark place.
Stronger alcohol and higher levels of hops might extend the shelf life of a beer.
One example is Michelob Craft Specialty beers, which are often at their peak with 180 days.
(Source: Budweiser support)

Brown sugar
Indefinite shelf life, stored in a moisture proof container in a cool, dry place.

Chocolate (Hershey bar)
1 year from production date

Coffee, canned ground
Unopened: 2 years
Opened: 1 month refrigerated

Coffee, gourmet
Beans: 3 weeks in paper bag, longer in vacuum-seal bag (After this time, color or flavor may be affected, but product is still generally safe to consume.)
Ground: 1 week in sealed container

Coffee, instant
Unopened: Up to 2 years
Opened: Up to 1 month

Diet soda (and soft drinks in plastic bottles)
Unopened: 3 months from "best by" date.
Opened: Doesn't spoil, but taste is affected.

Dried pasta
12 months

Frozen dinners
Unopened: 12 to 18 months

Frozen vegetables
Unopened: 18 to 24 months
Opened: 1 month

Honey
Indefinite shelf life

Juice, bottled (apple or cranberry)
Unopened: 8 months from production date
Opened: 7 to 10 days

Ketchup
Unopened: 1 year (After this time, color or flavor may be affected, but product is still generally safe to consume.)
Opened or used: 4 to 6 months (After this time, color or flavor may be affected, but product is still generally safe to consume.)

Maple syrup, real or imitation
1 year

Maraschino cherries
Unopened: 3 to 4 years
Opened: 2 weeks at room temperature; 6 months refrigerated

Marshmallows
Unopened: 40 weeks
Opened: 3 months

Mayonnaise
Unopened: Indefinitely
Opened: 2 to 3 months from “purchase by” date (After this time, color or flavor may be affected, but product is still generally safe to consume.)

Mustard
2 years (After this time, color or flavor may be affected, but product is still generally safe to consume.)

Olives, jarred (green with pimento)
Unopened: 3 years
Opened: 3 months

Olive oil
2 years from manufacture date (After this time, color or flavor may be affected, but product is still generally safe to consume.)

Peanuts
Unopened: 1 to 2 years unless frozen or refrigerated
Opened: 1 to 2 weeks in airtight container

Peanut butter, natural
9 months

Peanut butter, processed (Jif)
Unopened: 2 years
Opened: 6 months; refrigerate after 3 months

Pickles
Unopened: 18 months
Opened: No conclusive data. Discard if slippery or excessively soft.

Protein bars (Power Bars)
Unopened: 10 to 12 months. Check "best by" date on the package.

Rice, white
2 years from date on box or date of purchase

Salad dressing, bottled
Unopened: 12 months after "best by" date
Opened: 9 months refrigerated

Soda, regular
Unopened: In cans or glass bottles, 9 months from "best by" date
Opened: Doesn't spoil, but taste is affected

Steak sauce
33 months (After this time, color or flavor may be affected, but product is still generally safe to consume.)

Tabasco
5 years, stored in a cool, dry place

Tea bags (Lipton)
Use within 2 years of opening the package

Tuna, canned
Unopened: 1 year from purchase date
Opened: 3 to 4 days, not stored in can

Soy sauce, bottled
Unopened: 2 years
Opened: 3 months (After this time, color or flavor may be affected, but product is still generally safe to consume.)

Vinegar
42 months

Wine (red, white)
Unopened: 3 years from vintage date; 20 to 100 years for fine wines
Opened: 1 week refrigerated and corked

Worcestershire sauce
Unopened: 5 to 10 years (After this time, color or flavor may be affected, but product is still generally safe to consume.)
Opened: 2 years

Household Products

Air freshener, aerosol
2 years

Antifreeze, premixed
1 to 5 years

Antifreeze, concentrate
Indefinite

Batteries, alkaline
7 years

Batteries, lithium
10 years

Bleach
3 to 6 months

Dish detergent, liquid or powdered
1 year

Fire extinguisher, rechargeable
Service or replace every 6 years

Fire extinguisher, non-rechargeable
12 years

Laundry detergent, liquid or powdered
Unopened: 9 months to 1 year
Opened: 6 months

Metal polish (silver, copper, brass)
At least 3 years

Miracle Gro, liquid
Opened: 3 to 8 years

Miracle Gro, liquid, water-soluble
Indefinite

Motor oil
Unopened: 2 to 5 years
Opened: 3 months

Mr. Clean
2 years

Paint
Unopened: Up to 10 years
Opened: 2 to 5 years

Spray paint
2 to 3 years

Windex
2 years

Wood polish (Pledge)
2 years

Beauty Products
All dates are from the manufacture date, which is either displayed on the packaging or can be obtained by calling the manufacturer's customer-service number.

Bar soap
18 months to 3 years

Bath gel, body wash
3 years

Bath oil
1 year

Body bleaches and depilatories
Unopened: 2 years
Used: 6 months

Body lotion
3 years

Conditioner
2 to 3 years

Deodorant
Unopened: 2 years
Used: 1 to 2 years
For antiperspirants, see expiration date

Eye cream
Unopened: 3 years
Used: 1 year

Face lotion
With SPF, see expiration date. All others, at least 3 years

Foundation, oil-based
2 years

Foundation, water-based
3 years

Hair gel
2 to 3 years

Hair spray
2 to 3 years

Lip balm
Unopened: 5 years
Used: 1 to 5 years

Lipstick
2 years

Mascara
Unopened: 2 years
Used: 3 to 4 months

Mouthwash
Three years from manufacture date

Nail polish
1 year

Nail-polish remover
Lasts indefinitely

Perfume
1 to 2 years

Rubbing alcohol
At least 3 years

Shampoo
2 to 3 years

Shaving cream
2 years or more

Tooth-whitening strips
13 months

Wash'n Dri moist wipes
Unopened: 2 years
Opened: Good until dried out

Beauty Supplies Expiration Dates

Anti-aging and acne treatment
Three months to a year. Antioxidants are easily oxidized, so be on the lookout for any changes in color.

Bar soap
Up to three years.

Bath oil
One year.

Blush/Bronzer
18 months after first use

Body lotion
Two to three years, particularly if it’s in a pump container.

Concealer
12 months after first use

Creme eye shadow
6 months after first use

Creme blush
12 months after first use

Deodorant
Up to two years.

Eye and lip pencils
Three to five years. Sharpen them before each use as a way to preserve them and keep them clean.

Facial Moisturizer
12 months after first use

Foundation
About two years. Most bottles are designed to last that long. And if you don’t use it, chances are you didn’t love it to begin with.

Hairstyling products
Three to five years. Most are alcohol-based, which helps preserve the formula.

Lipstick and lip gloss
18 months after first use

Liquid eyeliner
3 months after first use

Liquid Foundation
6 months after first use

Mascara and liquid eyeliner
Three to four months. Make sure you’re diligent about replacing these items to prevent contamination and infections.

Nail polish
18 months after first use

Perfume
About two years. To get more mileage out of a perfume, resist the temptation to display a pretty bottle on your vanity. Instead, stash it away in a cool, dark place.

Shampoo, conditioner, and shower gel
About three years.

Shaving cream
About two years.

Skin care products
6 months after first use

Sunscreen
6 months after first use

Some additional reads you wanna check:
http://www.gourmetsleuth.com/Articles/Nutrition-Health-Food-Labeling-646/food-expiration-dates-faqs.aspx
http://ask.metafilter.com/17339/When-to-toss-canned-food-out
http://lancaster.unl.edu/food/ftjan05.htm

So, now, I have to do some spring cleaning :-)

Eid Mubarak

The long holidays are over. It’s back to work again but unlike the previous years, I’m not that eager to go back to work not because I still want to vacation but because I dreaded the new management. I don’t want to dwell too much on that here.


The past few days were quite uneventful. Due to uncertainty in the company, I have to save whatever I can just in case the job will not work for me anymore, thus, I spend the holidays here instead of going out of the country like what I did last year. Last year, I went to Cambodia for the Eid holidays with my friend. It was the first travel I awarded to myself since I started working. Aside from the excitement of travelling, the other purpose of that was to stay away from H and give him space that he once mentioned to me. Prior to that trip, we faced so many changes that were getting into my nerves already, and I needed a break.

it's not the regular tour, we took a photography tour thus we have more scenic shots than the usual touristy pictures. I rode an elephant for the first time, ate a spider and even let it crawl on my arm, hike a mountain and walk a lot with a sprain foot


The trip turns out to be a refreshing, very memorable and enjoyable trip, and yes, the purpose was served. From there on, my friend and I decided that we should plan and dream to have one trip a year, but because of the uncertainty in the office, I have to back out this time but I’m hoping we can go on Eid Ul Adha somewhere.


For the long holidays, I have my “Things-to-Do”. At first, I don’t know if I will be able to do everything as all the things that I want to do require time and attention. Aside from the long sleeping hours (I’m still deprive of sleep), I was able to do all the things I want to do even if it’s just a few and bits of that.

1. i finished reading a book in between all the other things

2. spend some quality time with the boys playing Wii and movie marathon, apart from the endless bickering and poking and as always the victim is me

3. was able to do one scrap out of the gazilion scraps that i'm planning to make, it's part of my photo-journal project. With all the changes in the office, I want to chronicle my 3 1/2 years in pictures via digiscrap

4. i'm creating my own tradition :-) like the previous eid, i always bake or make a cake or cook something new... last eid, i was in cambodia, i wasn't able to bake a cake but i was able to cook an authentic Khmer food. For this Eid, i didn't bake a cake from scratch but used a store bought cake mix. Tried making an icing too :-)






5. As promised, I took a picture of the moon on eid... isn't it lovely? My next purchase will be my Nikon D5100.....


And last, got the time to write this latest blog entry :-)Holidays are over, it's back to reality again tomorrow. I hope vacation leave will be approve also :-)

Mattri Chaiya Biddya Niketon

Education is for all, and since 2003, primary education is free for all children in government run school here in Bangladesh. Textbooks are also free, but even with this free education, the rate of out-of-school children are still high especially in the villages. Main reason for this is that the family can’t afford to buy the school supplies like pencils & papers nor give their children decent clothing.

Knowing this common scenario, driven by passion to help the needy, the dream to eradicate illiteracy and love for children, my friend's mom started a scholarship program, a non –profitable voluntary centre, the Mattri Chaiya Biddya Niketon or MCBN, for the less fortunate children of Kishoreganj.

The kids of kishoreganj and their houses made of tin roof and thatched grass. One side is for sleeping and other side is for their cow or goat.


Kishoreganj is located in the north-east of Bangladesh. It has thirteen upazillas and a total population of 3.5 million. The total population of Katiadi is 125'001 with a literacy rate of only 20.3% compared to the national average of 32.4%.
The main objective of this is to provide primary education to young children that due to economic reasons are not enrolled in the school public system. Mattri Chaiya Biddya Niketon’s programme follows the primary school curriculum and currently offers classes for both boys and girls from kindergarten to class 1 level, with plans to eventually include higher level classes.

HOW DOES THE SCHOOL FUNCTIONS?
A working team of 3 people (of which 2 are the founders of MCBN) ensures classes are held 6 days a week from 1500hrs -1700hrs (Saturday to Thursday). Besides primary education, it is planned for other activities to be gradually introduced, such as home visits of absent or difficult children, parents’ day, mother gatherings, informal discussions with students and Uthan Boithok.
The MCBN will ensure that children continue to study and that all the students entering kindergarten stay enrolled until class 2 at first and hopefully beyond as the centre’s curriculum expands.

THE CURRENT FUNDING SITUATION
At the moment the school has enough funds to cover the following costs:
- enrollment for 35.children (providing a stipend, biscuits and milk, books and pencils, uniform and shoes) for 3 – 6 months
- the renovation and the rent of the school premises (including a playground)
- the purchase of the classroom essentials, such as an alphabets posters, blocks and blackboard.
The chosen kids holding their school supplies and wearing their first set of clothing; with the teachers at the back and the newly painted classrooms

Winter clothes were provided to them last February 2011

The teaching is provided by 3 teachers on a voluntary basis at the moment, but future funding will be necessary to pay for the teachers’ fee. A fee of Taka 2’000 per month is planned as fees for each individual teacher, whilst the Head teacher will be paid an extra 500 Taka.

FUTURE FUNDING NEEDS
MCBN wishes to extend its offer to other children in the future and therefore is seeking private sponsors to either sponsor individual children and/or contribute to the function costs of the school (teachers’ salary and administrative costs).
Because this is a newly-founded programme MCBN encourages private donors to contribute on a one-year basis at first, which will allow the centre to evaluate after the first initial year the results of the programme and to verify whether the calculated costs are effectively sufficient.

Funds required sponsoring a child:
Per child Costs/per year
Stipend Tk.100 x 12 = Tk.1’200
Biscuits and milk Tk.100 x 12 = Tk.1’200
Books and pencils Tk. 50 x 12 = Tk. 600
Uniform and shoes (twice yearly) Tk. 500 x 2 = Tk.1’000
TOTAL = Tk.4’000 Annually

Funds required covering the school costs for a year:
Content Costs
Teachers yearly salary Tk.102’000
Administrative costs (year) Tk.18’000
TOTAL = Tk.120’000 Annually

Presently there are 3 teachers. However, it is foreseen that an extra teacher (a woman) will be engaged once funds are available. In the city as well as in the country, teachers are paid for the full year term, even though the school has long break during the ‘Ramadan‘ and Eid holidays. Children will continue to be paid the usual monthly stipend during the closure for the holidays.

The administrative costs include the monthly rents for the school (Tk.1'000) and office room (Tk.500/-) premises.
A bi-annual audit will be carried out by a third party accountant on a volunteer basis and a copy of the report together with a copy of the receipts will be provided to every individual sponsor. Monthly monitoring of the activities (this will include the attendance sheet) and the related expenses will be ensured by the back-up teacher and will be available to all sponsors if required.

Sponsors will also receive regular progress reports of the child(ren) they are funding allowing them to keep a close contact with the children benefiting the education provided by the centre.

**************************************************************************

I’ve been to the school twice and to the children’s houses too. And everytime we are there, mothers kept on asking us to please accept their children also in the school. Even if we really want to accommodate everyone, we can’t shoulder everything right now. And we also have to choose the worthy ones and not only the “opportunist”. Some mothers want their kids to be in the school because of the stipend that these kids will get.


The second time I went there, we invited the Filipino Grand Alliance of Bangladesh or FGAB to join us. The FGAB was the first group, apart from us family and friends, who shared their blessings to Mattri Chaiya. They organized a fund run last June 12, 2011 as part of the Philippine's Independence Day celebaration and the benefeciary was MCBN. They haven't seen the kids that time, just the school profile, so we thought it would be good if they can see where their "help" went.



It feels good to help those who are in need, and seeing them, the kids, smiling back at you whenever they receive a small candy or food are priceless moments. I hope someday, with our little help, they will be able to have a better future.

First Roja

Yesterday was the first day of ramadan. That makes the first roja (fasting). This whole month of fasting will culminate on Eid-il-fitr, another long holiday :-) :-) I still don't know where to spend the holiday, out of the country or save and stay here. In some ways, Ramadan is similar to Lent.

I love this month mainly 1)the shortened office hours, this time it's only up to 430pm, so that the people can go home and break their fast at home with their family, and 2)the traditional iftar food.

Here in Bangladesh, being a Muslim country, Ramadan is observe religiously. Most of the smallscale food/tea/cigarette stalls or shops are close until the sunset. Or, if they choose to open and do business, their stalls/doors are covered with fabrics/curtains to hide them from public eyes. They do so as respect to those who are fasting.
And when the Iftar time is near, you will see small scale vendors of Iftar food in most street corners. All the big restaurants and fastfoods have their Iftar meal and iftar boxes to offer. Usually, the offerings are Iftar meal-cum-dinner. And it's like a party with food flowing :-)

The staple iftar items are mostly fried foods, Piyaju (made of pulse, onion, and pulse powder), Beguni (made of eggplant and pulse powder), Jilapi, Muri (puffed crunchy rice grains, usually spiced with onion, garlic, chilli and other iftar items), Haleem, dates, samosas, Dal Puri (a type of lentil based pastry), Chola (cooked chickpeas), fish kabab, mughlai paratha, pitha, traditional Bengali sweets and different types of fruits mostly grapes, oranges & mangoes. Drinks such as Rooh Afza and lemon sharbat are common on iftar tables across the country.

Among the regular food items, my favorites are the Haleem and the Kashmiri sharbot. Ramadan for me is having the satisfaction & happiness of eating haleem either with rice or jilapi and drinking Kashmiri sharbot. So , whenever ramadan comes, one tummy is singing with glee!

This is my 4th time to celebrate the month of Ramadan here and yet, this is my first time to see the moon of the 1st roja.


I'm so happy! But then, still, nothing beats my 1st experience of the ramadan here way back 2008.

During Ramadan, all shops are open until the wee hours as this is the time when everyone are buying new things, clothes and what-nots for the eid. It's like Christmas rush. But no one inform me that during the iftar time, the shops will be close for few minutes and then open again after the iftar. Not knowing this, I decided to do my grocery before the Iftar time as we are off from the office early. I was in the grocery, walking and checking each aisles, when suddenly I notice, no one is around anymore. Not a single customer nor sales person...scared, it's like a zombie land, i decided to walk towards the counter to pay my grocery, and that's when I saw all the sales staff, sitting on the floor, about to partake their Iftar meal. They were surprised to see me also and invited me to join them. Some experience I will never forget.

Knock Knock

is anybody here?
1 year and 5 months of MIA...
lot of things happened within that time... i don't know how to chronicle everything, if i can chronicle everything...
there are lots of new things now:
I'm a new aunt (not so new anymore) to a handsome baby boy (will post more pictures)
I shifted to a new apartment, will share pictures soon and will try to chronicle my life in the new abode.
Reporting to the MD now. Opened a new fashion store KLOSET.

Just turn a year older.
Really, I need some catching up... will do it soon.