The 12 pounds of Christmas

CEBU, Philippines - Today, we bid farewell to 2010 and tomorrow, welcome 2011. The past year saw ups and downs in the world of sports, most of the events to be remembered and some others worthy to be deleted from memory. But we won't be dealing on the matter but rather stray somewhere to a heavy reality, figuratively and literally.

Most of us will be ending the year with several extra pounds added to our bodies. This is exactly the time of the year that we excuse ourselves and find reasons to pig out. In no particular order, I have chosen, as per personal "gain", 12 culprits that contributed to the 12 pounds of Christmas.

1) Carlos I and Fundador Exclusivo - two of the best affordable brandies in the market, it goes well mixed with coffee. Not only it makes you feel woozy and ridiculously cheerful for the holidays, it packs in the unwanted calories. And yes, these beverages could burn your throats so naturally, you need something to counter the burn. Read pulutan.

2) San Miguel Beer - does their ad say "Walang Katulad" or "Walang Katapat"? I'll go for San Mig Pilsen or San Mig Premium Malt over any other brand, of course, with a platter full of roasted country-style legumes. Translation - isang platitong mani.

3) Lechon - oh yeah, celebrations will never be the same without this centerpiece. I go for the tongue, it has lesser fat content, but the skin is invitingly crispy, the ribs deliciously aromatic. Ergo, who cares about the calories?

4) Roasted turkey - tender, juicy, lip-smacking good. A welcome change from the over-burdened, over-used and in some cases, malnourished lechon manok. Blame that new membership shopping store at the North Reclamation Area for this. 

5) Pasta - white sauce, meat sauce, tomato sauce, whatever. Carbo-loading with the only possible activity that produces sweat is when you had too much carbonara and you need quick and frequent dashes to the bathroom. Could this be karma?

6) Torta with glazed fruits from Titay's - I kind of favor patronizing local. It helps the economy. Yep, it's a great match with black coffee. If only the wifey permits, I could have the whole thing to myself. It's very rich, considering it's made of egg yolks. What else can I do, I'm just a mere husband. Bana ra gud ta.

7) Baked oysters - garnished with chopped garlic, butter and some lime, forget the high uric acid content. Joint pains come and go, baked oysters will be here to stay. Let's live with it. Mercury Drug is always happy to relieve our agony. In Liloan, Papa Kit's Lagoon and Marina and Politics Cafe do justice to baked oysters. Yeah, visit these places. (Guys, free plug na ni ha).

8) Clams, shellfishes and other related creatures - any way we cook them, they're always delectable. Oh sure, these are healthy alternatives, but in moderation. Is moderation the norm during this season? Just don't eat the shells.

9) Blueberry muffins, champagne cakes, chocolate cakes and other like species - life is indeed sweet. Just like torta, they all go well with black coffee. Holiday dinner is not complete without them. I'm craving for a slice right now. Who invented these?

10) Queso and hamon de bola - holiday staples that silently increases the reading on the weighing scale. We usually have small portions of these but we tend to have them frequently. A little of everything becomes everything in a little time.

11) Tsokolate with bibingka, puto, budbud and other kakanins - they sprout on church grounds during the 9-day dawn masses and are almost always irresistibly tempting. What adds to the malady is that by 8am, we are hungry again and go for our regular breakfast of fried eggs and inun-unan nga tolingan.

12) Chocolates, as in Lindt, Godiva, Cadbury, and other similarly colored edibles - I'll say again, life is sweet. In this case, bitter-sweet. In olden times, this stuff is called food for the gods. With an elevated blood sugar level, once in a while I crave for this. Who hates chocolates, by the way? Quick, I need my metformin hydrochloride.

HAPPY NEW YEAR! E-mail me at [email protected] . (FREEMAN)