Celebrating my unemployment

I don't really know how to write this post but I just have to say last week was one of the most memorable weeks of my life as I spent my last day at the firm "partying" with my officemates and spending the rest of the week in Baguio (our favorite place) to rest, mostly eat, in celebration of my unemployment haha.

Here's my Weekly Monotony!

✱ Last daaaayyy

August 23, 2022! Booked the lifestyle room and enjoyed the whole night just eating, singing, and occassionally attending to issues hahaha last day na nga eh may humahabol pa. I have the sweetest teammates, they really took note of my favorite foods and endeavored to have them available for our small salu-salo! I had planned to order Frankie's for everyone but the weather was so bad that day and most of the stores closed early. Even BPI closed early and I was supposed to run an errand with them argh. In the end I got wings from Buffalo Wild Wings haha sarap naman!

Anyway. Sobrang natouch ako. My friends got me cheesecake, Mama Lou's pizza, Amber's spaghetti and palabok, and mooore! Huhu sobrang daming food. Red and Henry gifted me a new phone case too huhu! And Camille got me SAMOSAS kami lang mahilig sa Indian food HAHAHA it was so good I hope more people would appreciate Indian food it's THE BEST!!!

White & Case will always have a special place in my heart. It's the first time I felt this comfortable in a company. Like I said, I could retire here. I really appreciate this day a lot, the effort it took for my friends to come in despite the stormy weather! The fooooood and the overall thoughfulness. I will never forget you guuuysss huhu. We're not complete in this pic but you're all in my heaaart hihi ♥

It was a delight having to experience our lifestyle room din! The Grand Videoke HD is the bomb! The sound system is perfect, we have mic stands, a big ass TV, there's even a PS5 but we just really want to sing hahahaha I love it! ♥

But all things must come to an end. After surrendering my stuff napaisip ako kung tama ba tong desisyon ko hahaha oh well, too late! HAHAHA

✱ Baguiooooooo

We love Baguio so much we keep coming back. The last time we went there we stayed a week at an AirBnb and tried to live "locally" as in not like a tourist. We bought groceries, I cooked every day, and worked like usual. In the afternoon before my shift starts we go out and explore, one spot a day, then come home right before it rains. Okay we did touristy stuff din pala haha. But everything worked within our schedule so it was perfect.

✱ Giraffe Boutique Hotel

This time is different. We booked at a hotel and just planned to eat all day everyday lol. At least I did. Jeckie went to an MMA gym haha. We've been eyeing The Manor at CJH but it just never went within our budget haha maybe next time. We stayed at Giraffe Boutique Hotel through a friend's reco and we loved it! I'll give it an 8/10.

We got a Superior Room that's 3.5k per night so not bad! It's beautiful, spacious, I love the colors. Just look at this ♥

I specifically requested for a room with a lot of windows but I didn't realize it meant getting the corner room that's right beside the road and the outdoor garden. You know what that means. Noise! Our first night was terrible because it was very noisy outside, if it's not the dogs barking, it's cats literally fucking around. And very early in the morning as the restaurant kitchen bustles I could've cried at the painful sound of cutleries clanking and of people talking and going about. We also had a cockroach incident. Could've soundproofed the room better but I don't really know what that entails. 

Besides the noise, privacy was also an issue. I requested for windows because I wanted better lighting and ventilation but I didn't realize we were facing a very busy part of the hotel and people kept walking past haha. In the end we had to keep the curtains down the entire time. So much for the view right.

But that's just on the first night. The succeeding nights were better, it's not always noisy and even when the curtains are drawn it's always cold hehe. So yeah, despite the noise and privacy issues, overall we stll had a great stay. Will write in detail on a separate blog post. :)

✱ Mangiamo Ristorante Baguio

I think the best part of the hotel is their restaurant, Mangiamo. It means "let's eat" in Italian ♥ 

If you are to stay in Baguio, you must try dining at Mangiamo. They serve delicious authentic Italian food that is so much worth every penny. Probably the best Italian we've tried. The chef is Italian too. I think we ate here two or three times. I recommend the following: 

• Mangiamo pizza - so freaking good, has truffle and ham, best pizza ever!!!
• Tagliatelle w/ truffle cream sauce - if you love truffle, this is a must!!! It's not on the menu but is usually on the board
• Mushroom soup - okay we love mushrooms. This is so legit, filled with wild mushrooms, not salty, not too creamy just pure mushroom soup goodness. 
• Caesar salad - if you love a garlicky caesar dressing this is lovely 
• Tiramisu - argh just typing it down makes me crave for it
• Apple pie ala mode - just the right serving! Perfect to cap off your meal 
• Prosciutto crudo e melone (parma ham and melon) - my goodness this is delicious! We loved prosciutto wraped mango when we we first tried one in Bora, but wow I love this melon one more! ♥

Now that I've started with the restaurant roll call, next up!

✱ Visco's

Everybody loves Visco's strawberry shortcake but have you tried their restaurant offerings? It's delicious!!! Especially their fried chicken. Reasonably priced too. 

I got the original fried chicken and Jeckie got the honey mustard one. We both enjoyed it. The chicken actually reminds me of Ellen's fried chicken in UPLB. And the gravy is buttery. Love it! ALSO, the ceasar salad on the side is delicious. Must try!

✱ Overtones Ito Sushi Bar & Japanese Restaurant 

Aaahh Jeckie's friend recommended this to us. Like Vizco's, you can find this along Session Rd., between Sizzling Plate and Pizza Volante. There's a small entrance there that's easy to miss because it's just a narrow entrance that leads to a flight of stairs. So don't miss it! 

I ordered Chirashidon, a favorite, and it's delicious! There's salmon, mackerel, octopus, UNI, tamago, crabsticks, etc., and lots of rice I couldn't finish. Besides the uni I also loved the squid wrapped nori. Super delicious! Jeckie got the wagyu sirloin. The cut was pretty thin so for medium rare it quickly turned to well done. So maybe next time get it rare? Teriyaki sauce is delicious! My iced mocha too!

There weren't a lot of people dining in so I'd say this one's a bit underrated. It's also a bit pricey for something along Session Rd. hehe

✱ Grumpy Joe

We though we're being careful with our restaurant choices so we went with one that's highly recommended by the internet. There was a line when we got there. We were 9th. We looked at the menu and everything looked promising...

... until my first order came. The corn chowder soup. It doesn't look too bad but the mound of grated cheese on top made me wonder, they use this type of cheese? I mean for a restaurant of this level I was hoping they'd opt for something more refined. Did we just fall into the hype?

Uhh yeah. Cos everything that was served after was underwhelming. The ony thing overwhelming is the serving size.

• Corn chowder soup - it was okay for 85 pesos but the mound of quickmelt was a bad precedent of what's to come
• Spicy buffalo wings - not spicy, not buffalo. Had we ordered barbecue glazed chicken wings we would've enjoyed this, but we didn't so it turned out disappointing. 
• Grumpy Joe special burger - oh this one will make you grumpy. So here's a burger, with a thin and dry patty, a pineapple slice that's thicker than said patty, ultra thin pickles, some cucumber slices, and caramelized onions siting right in the middle of the pineapple slice. There's also lettuce and a slice of fake cheese. Sauce? Maybe, I couldn't sense any. Did Joe make this when he's mad? Cos it shows. It's an abhorrent attempt at an aloha burger. Jollibee is laughing its ass out. The fries on the side however, tastes great! 
• Greek salad was so so, I don't get why this is marked a best seller
• Five cheese pizza - this was supposed to be a bestseller but the moment I tasted quickmelt cheesefood (apparently they use Eden) in there, I was defeated. I mean it tastes okay. But it's not 5 cheese delicious. Eden cheese isn't even real cheese. Yellowcab's 4 Cheese is much better. 

So much for the hype. I think this is okay for big families with kids in tow. Jeckie says it's elevated school canteen food. Harsh but totally apt. I think kids would love the food here. But foodies? Beware. 

✱ Oh My Gulay

Hmm. Located along Session Road at La Azotea Building, you have to climb 6 flights of stairs in order to get into the restaurant. It's on the 5th floor but there's another flight when you get to the restaurant entrance so yeah, siguradong gutom na gutom ka na pagdating mo sa taas haha. Obviously this is not for the physically challenged. The place is a visual feast. A museum slash nature sanctuary. It's like a mini Tam-awan Village! They serve vegetarian food so I know not to expect too much. 

We both got sisig. Which I regret. Jeckie seemed to love it. But to me it's just tastes like scrambled eggs. The sliders were disappointing too. Patty too dry. Remind us to stick to originally vegetarian dishes next time like eggplant lasagna, vegetables samosas, salads, humus, etc, and not converted meat dishes because I swear, they never come out as good.

I ordered pumpkin soup but it took too long to come out so I just cancelled it. I also ordered mango crepe but they gave out peach crepe so I had it remade. They must've rushed my order because the crepe was still hot when they served it. Consequently the mangoes got warm so it's not a good experience. They probably thought to compensate by drizzling extra chocolate syrup but heck they went overboard haha.

I'm not happy with this experience but I'm willing to try again, definitely with a different dish. 

✱ Lemon & Olives Greek Taverna

Finally got to try this! I'll tell you right now, this one's worth the hype unlike Grumpy Joe haha.

We ordered special lamb chops for two which came with L&O Salad, Poikilia, and lemon pilaf rice. Ordered hummus, plain yogurt drinks, and I got me some Turkish coffee (which I realized isn't my cup of tea lol).

Just looking at the photos already makes me wanna come back! 

• L&O Salad - absolutely delicious. Everything was balanced. I loved the peaches. It reminded me of Go Salad's Sweet Caroline except they use honey lemon vinagraitte instead of honey balsamic. It's sweet and tangy and my goodness I could eat this all day.
• Lamb chops - lamb is an acquired taste. I had to eat a lot of lamb dishes to realize how delicious it it. And this one is great.
• Hummus - simple, savory, creamy, garlicky, tangy. It's so balanced I love it.
• Poikilia - an appetizer plate. There's pita bites, sausages, and cheese sticks. I love this spread. Everything tastes good, specially the cheeese!!!

Aaaand that's it for my Baguio food diaries! I already wanna go back cos there's still so much we wanna try! Despite Grumpy Joe haha, I think this is still one of my favorite vacations! 

I'll be starting with my new job on Thursday so wish me luck! ♥

Today

I completed transitioning all my work items to my teammates. Whew. This is it. 

A couple of weeks ago I filed my resignation at the firm and now I'm down to my last two weeks here. I should be relatively free from now on seeing how I've finished handing over my work stuff to my teammates, but I still have to fix a couple of issues on one of my robots, and that's what I intend to do next week. After that I can relax. Well, after that AND after hearing some news from my new employer. 

You see, I'm kindof feeling anxious that it's been 10 days since I submited all of the requirements they asked for and I still haven't gotten any form of confirmation besides the autoresponder. The deadline they set for sending requirements is not until next week, so maybe I'm just worrying unnecessarily. Actually it's because I randomly saw a post earlier about rescinded job offers that got me thinking. Then again, this won't get me anywhere. Worst case scenario: they rescind. So I retract my resignation and get to keep my job at the firm (which pays well and has great benefits). Still sounds good right? 

But fudge I already bought a new phone and changed my number everywhere hahuhu.

Speaking of new phone. I bought an iPhone 13 Pro because of cinematic mode and didn't realize it was too heavy. And that I didn't need the additional macro lens. And that I would be cool with just the iPhone 13. Which is 30g lighter and costs 10k less. I'm having buyer's regret, mostly because my wrist is hurting from holding it and it's only been three weeks.

I should probably limit my screen time. Or get bigger hands yeah.

Today...

... is quite a good day! I vacuumed, made some coffee and resolved to get back to doing 10-min ab workouts daily. About a month ago I finished a 36 day streak, which is 6 days over my goal of just 30 days straight! And then we went to Boracay and I forgot about it. I'm proud that I was able to stick to something that long. I even documented my progress, or lack thereof, to prove something. And if anything, I've proven that 10 mins daily is not enough to lose weight hahaha. I didn't lose weight, didn't tone up like I expected, heck I didn't get abs. Of course 10 mins daily won't cut it. I remained fat, although for what it's worth, I didn't gain weight so that's a good thing! So yeah, I'm gonna continue with this just because it feels good to put some movement into my extremely sedentary life. Plus I really need to work on my core and basic mobilities cos I feel like my body is starting to rust, I can't even pick up something on the floor without my back complaining.

Here's to hoping for positive physical changes!

[Review] Part 2 of my Wink Laser Studio underarm whitening experience

Part 1 here: [Review] Part 1 of my Wink Laser Studio underarm whitening experience where I spent 12 sessions and figured it's not enough! 

As usual, this is an in-progess post! Will update this as I go along...

✱ Session 13: May 28, 2022 (Podium) 

I'm gonna start with session 13 since this is just a continuation. Here's a photo taken before the session, which means it's last session's result. Pretty pleased with how it's coming out so far hehe also because I have a better photo haha

✱ Session 14: June 25, 2022 (Podium) 

Not much has changed but it really has improved a lot.

The sessions now are more focused on the center part where it's still a bit dark. This area is usually the longest to treat because it's the part that folds and is exposed to more friction. In terms on UA habits, still the the same, Deonat tawas spray (aloe), and in the shower I wash it with Pond's facial wash, the pink variant. I think it's called Pond's Bright Beauty Serum Facial Foam now. The packaging used to be Pond's White Beauty Facial Foam. 

By the way, I thought I'd share something to encourage you about this freaking long UA whitening journey, so here's something I unearthed recently while I was cleaning my inbox... a photo of my UA four years ago, that's 2018 BEFORE I STARTED with SkinStation's Underarm Diode Laser Hair Removal... 

It's dark, hairy, rough, and itchy. So yeah, we've definitely come a long way haha. I can be patient wahaha!

✱ Session 15: July 23, 2022 (Podium)

Here you go! I feel like there's not much to say after 15 sessions so I'll just leave a photo here, which was taken the day after cos I forgot to take one before the session hehe.

✱ Session 16: August 20, 2022 (Podium)

Since we're only targetting the center area, the nurse told me we can shorten the gaps between sessions and do it every three 3 weeks. So that's what I'm gonna do.

✱ Session 17: September 10, 2022 (Podium)

I don't know but it kinda looks darker to me.

Actually, I'm not totally following the advice of the nurse to avoid physical activity/sweating within 48hrs. We play badminton every Sunday and my Wink sessions are always on a Saturday so it can't be helped. Anyway. Despite all that, I still think we've come a long way. It's just that I'm not seeing any significant progress lately. Could it be that my lifestyle is countering my progress? Hmm. 

✱ Session 18: October 2, 2022 (Podium)

I accidentally deleted my photos for this session but here's one taken five days later, I think that still counts hehe.

To be honest, I'm starting to lose trust in the process. It's just super slow now. Problem area remains the same, still mostly in the middle part where it creases. I don't know if it's ever going to lighten given my habits hehe. Sometimes I can't help but scratch it when it itches, I also don't wear sleeveless, and because I'm trying to be more active lately, I've been using Rexona when I workout because it's a good antiperspirant and deodorant. However, I'm afraid it's too strong for my skin, I remember using it when I was younger and I think it's the reason my armpits got darker. That and too much friction on my underarms from moving too much. But I don't wanna stink in the gym haha


✱ Session 19: October 29, 2022 (Podium)

Still the same, slow progress, if there's even any. Today's session was slightly more painful, I think they increased the intensity. Hopefully we get to the end of this journey cos I only have 5 sessions left and I'm not repurchasing if there's no visible progress between my 12th and 24th session.

I think I have to divert my attention to my face, I was looking at my progress photos and can't help notice my pimple scars huhu.

✱ Session 20: November 27, 2022 (Podium)

Really not impressed with the progress. Halos wala nang change. I'm thinking if it has something to do with my lifestyle already, because admittedly I don't follow the advise of no physical activity allowed within 48 hours (we play badminton every weekend), and I also keep wearing shirts with sleeves (I mean it's because I see no progress that I keep wearing the same shirts lol).

Definitely not repurchasing a package because of the very little effects I'm seeing at this point. I'm on my 20th session so it's kinda damning not to see anything I could consider a milestone. The effects are probably slower as you progress with the sessions because maybe I've hit a limit in terms of how much Revlite can lighten my underarms? I don't really know. 

There's something I noticed just now as well, seems like there's no dermatologist at Wink Podium? I have never talked to anyone who gave legit doctorly advise if you know what I mean. I wish I could actually get a consultation from a doctor, if they have one, and if it's part of the package. My initial assessment was done by one of the aestheticians who did the treatment and they don't really give any advise beyond what's written on their after-care cards. They won't even comment on your progress, they just know what to target based on the current condition of your skin. I guess they're not really allowed to say much cos they're not doctors.

So yeah, I'll probably try talking to a derma. There's Luminisce just across Wink and I'm hearing good reviews too. :) 

✱ Session 21: January 8, 2023 (Podium)

Ooooh, pretty good progress I see here. Just note that I didn't take this photo before my session, but rather a day after my session so it could be a combination of last month's progress plus this current session's tiny bit of progress? I do think it has more to do with this current session I had because I told the nurse to really focus on the middle area where it creases because it doesn't seem to be getting better.

You know what, I only have a few sessions left but I don't think I'm repurchasing with Wink. They increased their prices for 2023 and for such little progress per session it doesn't make practical sense. I think I'm only a few ways to go before I reach my kili-kili goals so I'm probably going to check out with SkinStation to finish this project haha.

✱ Session 22: February 4, 2023 (Podium)

Only two sessions left after this! There is progress, but you know, still not a lot and quite frankly I don't think it's worth getting a third package with them. I'll probably try SkinStation again after this.

✱ Session 23: February 25, 2023 (Podium)

Heyo! So kumusta naman tong kili-kili natin haha. I do think it's lightening a tiny bit but that because I'm using another product right now... V&M Natural's Ultrabomb and CPC+G oil.

I've used the same products five years ago then I stopped cos it wasn't always available. Then I tried it again this month cos it's easier to purchase online and yeah it still works! I started applying this religiously at night for more than a month now and the results are slow but they're showing and my UA is softer too.

I think after Wink I'll just stick with V&M. It works well on my face too hehe

✱ Last session: March 25, 2023 (Podium)

Here it is! My last progress photo. Like I said, I won't be getting any more packages with Wink. I think I've maxed out the effects of Revlite and yet my underarms are still not perfectly clear and smooth. Too bad. No one even offered me additional services or anything, no assessment or whatnot. Just goodbye and thank you in their usual spiels. The staff there are all friendly and nice but they're all too scripted like robots so I don't feel like they really care about your progress. Oh well!

Life lately

✱ Long overdue oil change!

Last weekend we had our long overdue oil change and PMS at Shell Dahlia. We're supposed to do it every 8 months or 10,000 km, whichever comes first daw. But well, it's been 15 months and the car has only been driven 2,000 km since. We usually go with the distance marker cos it looks more practical, but at our current rate it'll take us over 5 years to get the oil changed lol and that's something no one should ever do unless you enjoy riding an active road hazard.

The mechanic says everything looks good except for the AT fluid which needs changing. Have to buy this from Toyota directly so we'll get to that this weekend. It's the first time I heard of such fluid. Apparently it's used to lubricate the transmission component of the car to ensure smooth shifting from gear to gear.

We got the battery checked as well cos it's going 2 years and 10 months already and I feel like the headlights are starting to dim. The battery tester says it's at 62%, mechanic says it still a good number but if we're starting to observe some performance issues then it's probably time to change.

I did some Googling and it found that SOH (state of health) refers to the condition of the battery cells relative to its age, maybe like our phone battery health? SOC (state of charge) is the battery level relative to its capacity, so it's uhm 99% charged in a 62% capable battery. RES (resistance) - I don't really understand this but it says the lower the value of the internal resistance, the better the battery can discharge a high voltage load. Today I learned! Thanks to this Q&A.

✱ Maya and my first crypto purchase

So Paymaya recently rebranded into a neobank and it's offering 6% p.a. savings as its early access promo. Naturally I have to try. I pulled out a small amount from CIMB and transferred it to Maya. For CIMB to GCash to Paymaya, transfer fee is  ₱15 via InstaPay. Maya Bank is not listed yet so I have to move from Paymaya wallet to Maya bank account within the same app.

Since they also offer crypto on the platform, I tried that as well. Don't really know much about bitcoin so I just bought ₱500 worth. I mean it plumetted quickly cos I bought it on a downtrend lol but that's fine as I only intend to watch it fluctuate.

✱ Looking out 

You know I'm dreading RTO so much that I started handing out resumes to several companies through LinkedIn. I'm specifically avoiding consulting firms and agencies and so far I've gotten to three HR interviews. They all happened last week on Friday. It was a back-to-back-to-back interview begining 3pm and what can I say, I think it only made me more grateful for the firm lol. 

Company 1 has enough budget for my asking, offers permanent remote work, but I don't think I'm a good fit for the role. It's an automation testing role that uses technologies I'm familiar with but have never used within the scope of testing.

Company 2 has no budget for my asking, so they tried to encourage me by sharing their benefits. I was a bit hopeful about this company because the Jobstreet and Glassdoor reviews are good, and they're listed in Great Place to Work PH so those count for something right? But again, I don't think I'm a good fit because they wanted an automation tester with experience on Selenium and Cucumber so I'm definitely not the person they're looking for. Their max budget for the role is pretty much my current basic pay already so I decided not to pursue. The benefits are okay but not stellar compared to what I'm currently enjoying.

Company 3 is also a no-go. The position looks promising, very relevant to what I'm currently doing. The tools and technologies match, my years of experience check out, and it's a big company with a big infrastructure so it excited me how much I could learn from developing in such a scaled up environment. However, as much as I felt the fit, they couldn't possibly meet me at my asking price. Their budget is way below my current salary. And my asking, according to the HR is already on the executive level lol.

So yeah, after the call HR formally told me they'll keep me in the pool but would not pursue with my application. We talked for over 30 minutes, starting with a long primer on the history of the company, it's partners, subsidiaries, and parent conglomerate. It's actually the same company I worked with 10 years ago as a fresh grad haha, and back then the HR didn't give me this intro lol so I actually learned a lot haha.

It's kinda sad that none of the interviews worked out for me. It made me wonder if I'm actually overpaid or I'm just looking at the wrong companies lol. Actually no I'm not overpaid, some companies - specially local ones - just don't have the budget haha. Also, as my husband says, "better overpaid than underpaid".

It also gave me an insight at how blessed I am with the firm. In 5 years my pay has increased by 56% so I'm still on track as far as my personal standards go. My workload is manageable, my teammates are all great to work with, my manager is cool, and my office friends are a delight. I've become so comfortable I don't wanna leave. Also I don't wanna lose the iphone plan I literally can't afford it haha.

Okay that said I think I'm gonna give RTO a chance. Still actively responding to promising opportunities though, specially overseas ones!

✱ YouTube payout

Good news! I just got my second YouTube payout! I'm saying it's YouTube but it's actually Google Adsense so that's a combination of my blog and vlog earnings. The income ratio being 25% blog and 75% vlog so yeah it's mostly YouTube. I set my withdrawal threshold to $200 and I was able to reach it in six months! I know it's not that big, when I got in the Youtube Partner Program (aka monetized my channel) my first payout came nine months later. So this arriving three months early is a great thing! It means I'm still earning lol. It's fun to get paid doing stuff you enjoy no? lol

Ah, life

For the first time in my life, I voted! May 9 was a monumental day for me. It's the first time I gave over zero fucks for this goddamned country. For a while I had hope for the Philippines. That while being less than 24 hours. Cos not even two hours after the voting period closed my heart began to sink. With every passing hour I tried to make sense of things. How is this possible? Has anyone applied Benford's law to the election results? The answer is yes and the data trend checks out. Read: PH 2022 election results analysis using Newcomb-Benford’s Law

So eventually the feeling of defeat turned into acceptance. Whatever fucks I invested during the day dwindled back to zero. Apathy. Then to a negative. Hatred. I was never proud to be a Filipino. This time I'm ashamed.

Now I'm back to usual. Lazy. Unmotivated. Didn't take a day to lose all the hope I had. Maybe because there was never much to begin with. Oh well. Tomorrow is another day.

Samgyup with the fam with our new portable stove

I have always wanted to treat my parents to samgyup but we could never find a weekend that's not too crowded and ma-traffic. My parents are always wary of going out and as much as possible would rather dine in at home than expose themselves to the horrible Metro Manila traffic, and also people lol. And then I got a portable stove and an outdoor table and the first thing I thought was finally, we can eat samgyup at home!

It was a fine Sunday afternoon when we gathered at my parent's roofdeck. Jeckie and I brought meat for grilling. And to complete the samgyup kit we also came with some kimchi, minced garlic, and of course a bunch of lettuce!

Setting up the portable stove was very easy. It comes in a cute carrying case and also includes an English manual so you won't get lost. You may get this Gem portable stove from True Value. Don't forget to also purchase a butane gas!

Just place the butane gas in place, aligning the notch collar on the index arm. Our butane can is too big so we can't close the cover but that's fine! Press down the black lever to lock the cartridge in place. When it's firmly set turn the ignition knob all the way down to Max, then turn it a bit more till you hear a click. The burner should ignite automatically.

Didn't think it was so easy to set up your own samgyup at home if you have a portable stove with you!
 

Get the stove along with this Lifetime table that's adjustable and extremely portable and you've got yourself an easy to setup dining set that you can take with you anywhere you want. It fits just right at the trunk of our car and even the backseat. This portable Lifetime table is also available at True Value. I couldn't be happier about this table cos it's so multipurpose and compact, I can use it to work and just stow it away when not needed.

Needless to say we had loads of fun eating together this way. It was a welcome change dining in an indoor-outdoor space under the bright sun in a cool afternoon. It was worth hauling a bunch of things up two flights of stairs haha!

Already excited for our next picnic!