Vamos a Comer

One of my favorite rooms at Cebu Avenue is the dining room. When all twelve of us were around, this was one of the rooms where we would be able to gather all the members of the family together.

As expected, there would always be several conversations going on around the table. And even after we'd eaten, we would spend lots of time chatting away.

Stories were exchanged, birthday candles were blown, meetings were held, boyfriends were introduced, and more, all within the four walls of the dining room.

When eating time was announced, someone would always shout, "VAMOS A COMERRRRRR!"

We have always had a round table, big enough to accommodate all twelve of us, with a lazy susan in the middle. We each had our places, of course. The seating arrangement was such that family members from the 'upper half' were seated beside their assigned 'lower half' sibling with the exception of Slash-M who was somehow exempted from 'kuya' duty.

Eldest Sis was in charge of J and Z who were the youngest. London Eye was assigned to Sunshine, Sister Deer took care of Mindy, while Jersey Girl was under my watch. We were their 'mothers' and they were our 'babies.'

Think of a clock. Sunshine was at one o'clock. Moving clockwise, we had J, Eldest Sis, Z, Mother, Father, Jersey Girl, Angels4Kids, Mindy, Sister Deer, Slash-M, then finally London Eye at 12 o'clock.

These are just random thought about family members. (By age ...)

Father -- at the breakfast table, he'd always have a cup of freshly brewed coffee on hand while reading the morning papers. At night, there would be some nuts before dinner. On special occasions we'd have sparkling wine and other goodies.

Mother -- her favorite past time at table was to consolidate. I can actually imagine her consolidating food of contrasting tastes, if they happened to be of the same color. She likes to arrange the food in a particular order which I can never seem to remember. (Was it drinks, rice, viand, vegetables, then fruits?)

Eldest Sis - we used to cook two chickens for the twelve of us for one meal. Eldest Sis always got the thighs. And when rambutan season came along, Father would be sure to bring some home for her.

London Eye -- always loved eating; definitely loves food. Often requested our cook to make 'boneless chicken with bones.' She once made chocolate icing as part of her school requirement. All I remember is that it had condensed milk and it was YUMMY!

Sister Deer -- liked to prepare scrambled eggs with a particular pan. Brought home cook books from Minocqua and introduced us to that casserole with chicken, asparagus, cream of mushroom soup, cheese and buttered bread.

Angels4Kids -- I liked to prepare my food so that I could enjoy eating afterwards. I'd peel fruits (like mangoes or watermelon), take out the seeds, slice them up and stick them in the ref. I was also the designated crab peeler. Mastered the art of eating with a fork and knife.

Slash M -- gave up chocolates for Lent more than once. One of the more likely suspects when the lazy susan swirled without anyone's hand moving it. (He'd use his foot to move the lazy susan from under the table.)

Sunshine - perpetually watching her figure even if she was stick-thin. Eating time didn't seem to excite her as much as it did the rest of the family. Whenever Father wanted to buy something she liked, he'd go for sapin-sapin.

Jersey Girl -- she chewed ice like no other. (I don't know if that qualifies as a hidden talent.) Though not a very picky eater, she absolutely hates okra! And I remember, she loves haw flakes.

Mindy -- my partner in crime when it came to lanzones. Between the two of us, we could finish a whole kilo. When the food was fish, she ate everything, including the eyes. (Yikes!)

J - whenever J was in charge of preparing the menu, we were sure to have fried chicken. Much to Mother's dismay, he dunked the crispy squid flakes in water. He had the semi-permanent job of getting tissue paper by virtue of his location.

Z - 'slow but sure' describes her when she eats. She had ordered half a chicken at Baguio Country Club once and was at it from lunch till dinnertime. It may have taken her a couple of hours, but she finished what she ordered.

Other things that come to mind ...

There was the giant chocolate KISS and the huge L-O-V-E in the freezer from hopeful suitors. (Wish I was into baking back then. We could have made lots of chocolate goodies using those tokens of affection.)

I remember one boyfriend who joined us for a birthday celebration. He was shocked at the slice (actually, more like 'sliver') he received and the disappearing birthday cake. (Yes, before the days of counting calories, pies and cakes in the house were divided into twelve and served. Then within minutes... "poof" ... all gone.)

When there were three of us with boyfriends, the placemats were arranged in portrait rather than landscape to make room for the extra heads.

We used to have brain soup when Lola N was still alive.

She used to make mango candies and other goodies.

We called our beef steak 'dark meat with toyo.'

We often had breaded liver for dinner. (To get our dose of iron, perhaps.)

We would have baked fish with mayonnaise for Sunday dinner. After we flaked our fish and mixed it with rice, we would mold our food into various shapes like little fortresses and eat away along the perimeter until all the food was consumed.

We used to eat paksiw na isda with raw eggs.

We used to eat raw eggs with rice for breakfast. (I added sinigang broth to mine.)

London Eye once threw cold water over my head as she passed by my spot.

Before the gallery got set up, we had puzzles hanging on the wall. The Last Supper is still hanging on another.

My memory fails me and I can't really remember all the stories and the details, but when it comes to the dining room (and all these things related to food), there is that warm fuzzy feeling and swirls of happy thoughts.

Let's eat!