[Writing Meme] Day 4: Your Favorite Book
I was a funny kid. I was more enamored by a list of banned books than I was by any best seller or recommended library list. Harriet the Spy caught my eye on a list of banned books in one of those almanacs. I was intrigued about the story of the spunky young kid who writes notes about other people. My first writing workshop with Teacher Maya Jacinto used an excerpt from Harriet as an example for worldbuilding, and a few months later I managed to find a copy from a boutique bookstore.
I had this vague notion of wanting to be a writer, and I automatically took to anything that talked about writing. I was eleven years old at the time and didn’t really understand the emotional range and complications Harriet went through, even though we were about the same age. I realized later that I probably saw myself through Harriet: the awkward kid who wrote a lot and were open to a lot of things my peers weren’t open to. At the time I started reading Harrier the Spy I really was growing up, and growing out from my colleagues. My elementary school was one of those most students stayed in from kindergarten through grade 7. I got the feeling, though I couldn’t quite put it to words at the time, that change was not something my peers were open to. I didn’t feel free to try new things, and in the few times I did I wasn’t prepared for the ridicule and criticism that followed.
It took a few reads for me to get Harriet, and a few more years before I really understood how much the book taught me. To this day I read the book when I feel that I’m in an awkward place, or when I’m about to come face-to-face with dangerous, beautiful truth.
Part of the 30 Day Writing Meme. Next is Day 5: Your Favorite Quote.
A Scene from a Cot
My mother’s been in the hospital for the last few days to monitor her anemia. It’s nothing too serious, as she still has enough strength to nag me about the little things. On her second day she asked me to look for her flash disc – “it’s somewhere among the sheets!”
When people tell me to tell my Mom to relax, I always retorted that I’m better off beating climate change or achieving world peace.
Mom and I shared the cot so we could watch the Oscars in the room’s teensy-weensy TV. The Doctor checks up on her and is touched at the sight: a woman in her fifties with her young adult daughter.
“Two years ago,” he recalled. “My mother was confined to this very room in a coma. I stayed by her side – and you can see, I’m quite old. What a sight that was! You’re lucky to have such a devoted daughter who’ll one day look after you that way.”
Mother smiles. “We get a better view of the TV from here eh.”
February Updates: A Netbook and Events
The No Excuses Netbook
Since the demise of Archangel, I’ve been in the market for a new laptop. I am a huge Mac fan, but the price is well out of my league for now. All I really needed was a machine to write with and give presentations on. After a few months of canvassing, I settled for the HP Mini 1000.
I got it barely-used from Zane who won it in a raffle. I settled for HP because of its keyboard. Since I’ll be using it for writing most of the time, I wasn’t keen on struggling with baby keys. I’ve tried two other netbooks before and found myself often frustrated with the keyboard size. I still need to get used to the HP Mini keyboard, but it isn’t as frustrating.
The HP1000 is the old model, hence limited battery (2 cel battery, allowing for 2-3 hours battery time) but it does the job just fine. Best of all, it fits in my daybag! I’ll be blogging a little bit more about the specs after I tinker with it for a little while longer.
February in Pictures
I faced a post-Ondoy raket rut last December, but February more than made up for that black hole. I took on a lot: 1 productions, 1 event, in addition to my regular teaching and writing load. It was actually manageable, though I had to lay off most of my social engagements. I was tired a lot, yes, but I knew that was part of the deal. Besides, The payoff’s worth it.
Aside from Romeo and Bernadette, I also helped stage manage the Jon Schmidt and Steven Sharp Nelson concert. It’s amazing to hear Love Story Meets Livin La Vida by Coldplay live, and to meet and talk with some very talented musicians – and showmen! Thank you too to everyone for the amazing turn-out! Also, to my colleagues and friends at Pocketful of Kids for helping make it happen!
I also managed to sneak in a little time in the last week of Feb (the busiest week!) to attend a talk by Ronnie del Carmen, Story Supervisor and Art Director for Pixar Studios. Ronnie del Carmen is Filipino, and he got started by storyboarding for advertising. He used to work as an art director, while my Mom worked as associate creative director in the same team. Apparently, I used to crawl around their cubicles when I was a toddler.
Ronnie left for the states to work for Dreamworks, then moved to Pixar where he had a hand in movies such as Finding Nemo, Wall-E, and Up. He sometimes come back to the Philippines to catch up with family, old friends, and give talks on the storymaking process for Pixar’s films. A little more on that in another entry, as soon as I get the transcript and DVD of the talk.
I have a month before another set of jobs come in. I intend to use the time to bond with my “Mini Mii” computer to catch up on writing and other creative projects. I love the work, and I made time for the work. But now’s the time to focus on my work.
Searching for Close-to-Authentic Nasi Goreng in Manila
It was Indonesia that made me a foodie. I never realized how many tastes, textures, and flavors there were until I bit into a nasi goreng special. Cooking Master Boy, an anime, described certain flavor fusions to be like “A tornado in my mouth!” I first laughed at the horrible metaphor until I actually realized what it meant to have a tornado in the mouth. It’s damn good stuff, that.
Mom worries that I have spoiled palate. I have been fortunate enough to travel around Asia and Europe and taste cuisine as it should be. I’ve had escargot in France, I’ve had dimsum in Hong Kong, lauriat in China, ramen in Japan, and pasta in Italy. I’ve even had kangaroo jerky from Australia. My Indonesian maid cooked nasi uduk from scratch, as in, she would get an entire coconut and grate it herself from scratch. That’s a big deal to even locals, who don’t mind stir-frying in the instamix – that’s what they’re made for anyway.
The good news is, I’m not that spoiled. I can still be happy with Chinese and Japanese fast food. I find though that I’m ridiculously hard to please with Indonesian food. The closest I got to authentic was a stall in Salcedo Market that even served a recipe for rendang. Sadly, It closed shop some time ago.
Banana Leaf isn’t perfectly authentic, but they got the Nasi Goreng right. It has the right color and texture, and goes great with their satay. For some semblance of Indonesian cuisine, it works. It keeps my taste buds happy for a little while. Banana Leaf’s flavors are far more satisfying than Nasi Lemak at Robinson’s Galleria, which an acquaintance recommended to me as Singaporean-owned with authentic Singapore-Malay-Indonesian cuisine. I had high hopes for Nasi Lemak but was very disappointed when I recognized their nasi goreng as a fushion of nasi uduk with ikan asin. There is a stark difference, ok? Nasi Goreng is supposed to be reddish and pasty, while Nasi Uduk is a coconut-based rice.Their laksa was also disappointingly thin, though it captures a similar flavor to the Singaporean laksa we all know and love. Not great, but ok. Probably better as long as you haven’t tasted the real thing.
For authentic, you’re better off buying instant.
Matahari snack stands in some branches of SM and Metro Gaisano malls stock Indofood instant noodles and other products. Their stock is limited and differs from branch to branch, but it works. You might also get lucky at Robinsons Supermarket’s Asian Food section, which has excellent instant pho noodles called Oh! Ricey! and instant laksa that noodle fiend-friend, Khursten, highly recommends.
Are there any IndoMalay food places I’m missing in Metro Manila? Let me know! Sate this foodie, let’s put it to my nasi goreng or mie goreng taste test!
[Writing Meme] Day 3: Your Favorite TV Show
I currently don’t have cable TV so I have to turn to DVDs or the internet for my TV fix. I am addicted to crime dramas, especially to Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.
If you’re not familiar with the series, L&O:SVU focuses on a special team in the New York Police Department tasked with investigating sex crimes.
I am one of those that enjoy criminal profiling and forensic investigation. It started with Discovery Channel’s Medical Detectives from several years back when we still had cable TV. I didn’t get into CSI because it was too glitzy, and I preferred the psychology more than the fancy laboratory toys that can track a perp from the littlest details. L&O: SVU is dark and disturbing, but most of the time delivers excellent mysteries and commanding performances. I have yet to see a crime drama top the quality of this series. The closest was Criminal Minds, up until the writer’s strike did them in during their 3rd season.
A part of me considers getting units in Criminology because of these series’, but even they advise against it. For one thing, I’m queasy. Also, these cases take a mental and emotional toll on the investigators. It’s tough enough to make the case, and to see justice served.
Part of the 30 Day Writing Meme. Next is Day 4: Your Favorite Book.