On a gloomy afternoon

WE had lunch and afternoon snacks at Ayala Triangle yesterday. It was Agnes's birthday treat.



Kanin Club was our lunch destination.



Bernie and Migz sharing an interesting conversation.



Charlie and Agnes, the unbeatable duo when it comes to food.



That side of the table: Rich, Franco, Charlie, and Agnes. Note the empty plates; we ate like there was no tomorrow.



Bernie digging into the aligue seafood rice. We also had the bagoong rice and tinapa rice. The crispy diniguan was interesting. I thought the callos was delicious; I liked the sweetness. The laing was great, too, though I wouldn't have minded if it was made more spicy.



After lunch some people's tummies were bulging, including mine. I started rubbing tummies, which caused a lot of discomfort for the people involved. What joy.



The General Surgery 2 Team (Colorectal Surgery)! These are the people I go on duty with for my Surgery Ward rotation.



General Surgery 1 (Head, Neck, and Breast Surgery) Team! The pose was largely inspired by The Godfather (and to my mind, The Sopranos). Who's the capo? Clearly the person at the middle.



It was time for dessert. We headed to nearby Banapple.

We dined al fresco. I was with Rich and Casti.



The twins Migz and Franco showing how sweet they really are to each other. On any other day they'd rather not stay within one meter of each other, despite the fact that once upon a time, they had shared a uterus in their fetal stages.



The only women in our block, Bernie and Agnes. Never underestimate their ability to demolish a slice of cake.



The other set of (unlikely) twins: me, sharing a warm shoofly pecan pie with Casti, who convinced me to order a cappuccino. The reference to twin birth was derived largely from the fact that we share the same hairstyle and possess a similar alopecic scar in practically the same scalp region. He took all the coolness, height, and lip redness; I was left with melanin.



Everyone, except the post-duty team, got sleepy after the meals. It was the perfect opportunity to take snapshots of their faces in contemplation. If you look closely they resemble showbiz stars!

Rich, aka Victor Neri.



Charlie, aka Señor Santibañez (and very recently, Yilmaz Bektas). His chest hair, ladies and gentlemen.



Franco, aka Patrick Garcia. His twin Migz looks like Dingdong Dantes (to which Bernie disgreed vehemently, "Mas Richard Gomez siya para sa akin!")



Our action star Casti, aka Jeric Raval!



Our birthday girl, dear Agnes Custodio, aka Pops Fernandez! We pray that you may have Life and have it to the full (John 10:10). Thanks for sharing your life with us and for treating us!



Good food, great company . . . we had so many things to be thankful to God for.