ElusiveWords's Xanga

Triggering memories

Wed, 16 Jul 2008 00:10:44 GMT

Memories can be funny sometimes. It gets triggered when you least expect it.

I was cutting tofu the other day for my soup. Normally I just put it on a plate or the cutting board and get on with the job. But the other day, I held it on my hand and diced it with a knife. The tofu is soft so I knew I wouldn’t cut myself. In a flash, I was back in my mom’s kitchen in Manila. She was holding the tofu in one hand and cutting it with the other. I asked her “Won’t you cut your hands?” She grinned and said “No, watch carefully. You just stop when the knife reaches your hand. Just do it slowly and carefully.” She lowered her hands and let me watch closely as she sliced the tofu. I turned my head to make sure I saw the knife reaching her hands. She slowly retracted the knife from the tofu and continued cutting it cross wise to make small cubes.

I paused and smiled as the memories came back.

* * *

My bf called me tonight to watch a show on CBC. It was a documentary called “Tailor Made”. I’ve seen parts of this before so it was good to take a break from work and watch the parts I haven’t seen. It’s a pretty good documentary. You can also read a bit more about this last tailor (custom made suits) in Vancouver’s Chinatown here.

While watching it, I remembered the very first suit I got to look for a job. It was from a small store in my neighborhood. I knew one of the guys who worked there part time. I went in and explained to the owner that I was looking for a suit for job interviews and hopefully to wear when I got a job. I also didn't have a lot of money so I wanted something affordable.

He spent a lot of time with me and steered me towards a wool navy blue suit. It wasn’t the most expensive suit – sort of a middle of the line. But he explained that it was flexible. He showed me the many different colors of shirts and patterns of shirts that would go well with the suit. He also picked out a tie for me – burgundy rep tie with stripes running diagonally across. One of the colors of the stripes was the same blue of the suit. He walked me to the window and explained that sunlight is the best light to look at colors of clothing. The artificial lights can sometimes give a different shade of color. He showed how the color of the tie would complement the suit and how the blue stripe would also pick up (match) color of the suit. This would help pull it together. When I came back a week or so afterwards to pick it up, he asked if I knew the proper way to sit down. I shrugged and just sat down on a chair. He then told me to watch as he sat down. He gently pulled his pants up (perhaps an inch or so) as he was sitting down. He explained that by doing so, it reduces a lot of the stress in the fabric by the rear (the bum).

Well, back to work. I just remembered that I have to finish reading this document for tomorrow.

Toronto Night Market

Mon, 14 Jul 2008 22:54:38 GMT

Some pictures from the recent Night Market. It was hot, with the occasional burst of rain, humid and jammed with people. I think they'll need to find a bigger site next year. The smelly tofu booth had the longest lines - up to 80 to 100 by my estimation. It was a tiring day for both my bf and I.

The sign says it all.


Smelly tofu - Mother Bear's Smelly Tofu. There was another booth that also sold smelly tofu. I think I'm used to the smell by now.



Food booths...





uhm... this isn't food, they also had many other booths selling everything from DVDs, books, cell phone accessories, souveniers etc...

I didn't stick around too long for the music - it was tiring.

Yardwork = sweaty labor

Sun, 13 Jul 2008 23:22:00 GMT

My brother, sister and I spent most of the day cleaning my dad’s garden. None of us are gardening types. Without the steady care and love from my mom, all the weeds now have squatting rights. My dad has someone to mow the front and the back so from far away, it just looks green. There are just hints of the vegetable garden that my mom nurtured. I noticed some garlic sticking out from near the bushes. The rhubarb is still there. There’s also a plant called “gow gai” it has red berries and the leaves can be used for soups.

But the main work was cleaning the eaves trough. My brother took the brunt of that work. I did one small side of the house while he did the rest. I just held on to the ladder while he was up there. While we were cleaning, we also talked about what to do with the house afterwards. Almost all the houses in the neighborhood that have been sold have been torn down and rebuilt. One of the houses in the neighborhood underwent a total rebuilt from basement up. It's selling for over $1M. To me this is just sheer lunacy. But we have a lot of thinking to do.

Afterwards, I also did some pruning. I had no idea what I was doing – I just wanted trimmed a few things back, cut out all the dead branches, suckers etc… I was sweating and the spiders and other insects gave me lots of hugs while I visited their homes.

I should have gotten some sun block - my arms are a bit red from all the sun. I had originally planned to be done before lunch. But we worked through lunch and finished everything. All in all, we have about 8 big garden bags full of "stuff". All in all, it was just a small dent in the job jar for the house.

Summer storms and flowers

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 22:49:22 GMT

It was a crazy wet weather tonight.  It was just drizzling a bit but by the time I was halfway to my car, the skies opened up. I made a sprint to my car but not before I got wet. I wasn't worried about getting wet though. It was the lighting that spooked me.

The rain poured out of the clouds during my drive home. It felt as if I was going through a gauntlet of fire hoses. As the cars traveled through the puddles, it sent sprays of water 5 to 10 ft high. I had the wipers going full blast. I just took it easy, concentrated and thankfully so did the drivers around me. The rain subsided shortly after I got home. I just hope it's not that humid tomorrow.

No food pictures tonight - just flowers. Yup... another lazy entry.

Lazy entry - food pics

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 00:08:34 GMT

Here are some food pics – which means, this is a lazy entry.

The beef, zucchini, potatoes were from the local farmer’s market. The beef is a steak and I just cut it into small pieces and pan fried it. The oyster mushrooms are organic but were from the supermarket.

Fresh asparagus – they were picked the day before the market. I just blanched them in some water and they were very sweet.

Cherries – also from the farmer’s market.

This is a whole wheat and flax – not dry at all, very moist and has a very rich taste – almost like eating beer. It’s also from the farmer’s market.

I’ve also picked up muffins, tomato sauce, jams and a bunch of other veggies every week. It's a small market but it's got a bit of everything. Some of the vendors are here from last year. So it's nice to see some familiar faces.

I'm also seeing a lot more young families here too. I always thought it was just mostly singles and couples in this neighborhood.

Sometimes a picture doesn’t always tell the truth. This is fried rice but the rice wasn’t cooked properly. I’ve been trying a different brand of rice and the grains were a bit hard after I fried it. Oh well...

A father son moment

Sat, 05 Jul 2008 00:25:36 GMT

I took my dad to the cemetery. It’s been three years now and he has a very difficult time there. I left him alone briefly while I got some water for the flowers. He looked intensely at the columbarium. After I placed the flowers down, he started to talk about the old days – back in Manila when he was just a child. He sat down on the cold metal bench and talked about his grandfather who really was the force behind the family. He recalled talked about skipping a grade and then another one when he was about 8 to 9 yrs old. He talked about the many relatives that came over to the Philippines who were from the same village as his grandfather. They came to find work and opportunity.

His grandfather helped set them up with jobs. Some were able to learn English, trades, business skills while others who had no aptitude for learning and hard work simply languished. One year, his dad somehow managed to enroll him into an American school. His grandfather chafed at the decision. He worried that my dad will be useless because he won’t learn Chinese. The metal bench wasn’t that comfortable and every time I shifted position, he thought I wanted to leave. But I said no – I had time. He continued chatting for awhile about relatives whose names I barely remember. He would grimace when I gave him a blank look at those names. Eventually he stood up and said we should get going. He took one last look at my mom’s resting spot and got into my car.

We went to dimsum for lunch. As we sat down, he hailed one of the long time servers and asked for Doa Foo Fa (soy bean custard). The server was surprised and jokingly asked why he wanted dessert so soon when he hadn’t even eaten the dim sum yet. I just shrugged. I guess he’s entitled to eat whatever he wants and whenever he wants. He nodded in approval as he ate the custard. It had a sweet ginger syrup on it. I selected the rest of the dimsum from the carts when they rolled past our table. He was soon stuffed. Satisfied – I paid the bill after the manager came by and waived the “tea charge”. I drove him home, saw him into the house and left. As I drove away, I looked at the door and he was standing there waving goodbye as he always does.

Later that evening, my sister called me and told me my dad was despondent and withdrawn. I called him the next day and he told me he was fine – just had a rough evening. I can’t believe how fast he has aged in the last year. The “age spots” are all over him. One of his fingers is crooked. He used a cane for the first time after his back started to ache. The strong, commanding voice now sounds nervous and hesitant. He’s also lost weight. He was a voracious reader and now complains that he can only read 50 pages a day.

Some of you commend me on being a good son. But I struggle at this. You only read things from my perspective with all my biases. I know I should spend more time with him.

Running for My Life

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 22:07:45 GMT

The heat from the jungle blanketed me like an itchy wool blanket. The thorns from the thick undergrowth were like razors. The pain from the cuts was made worse by the sweat oozing into the wounds. The bites from the insects added to the misery. I stopped and looked behind me but couldn’t see anything. The wall of sound from the animals and insects was loud and eerie.

I wiped the sweat from my brow and continued to plow on. Suddenly the jungle noise stopped. I quickly ducked. I could hear a branches snapping and what sounded like a stampede. Within seconds, I saw a big, angry, ugly hippo running right at me. I jumped but it was too late. It hit me at full stride and fireworks exploded in my eyes. I struggled back to my feet and fell again. It was just standing there and for a moment, I thought it was snickering at me.

I got to my hands and knees and slowly crawled away while gasping for air. It was painful trying to breath. My vision started to blur and I bumped into a tree. The tree trunk moved and I looked up. It was the biggest elephant I ever saw. In a split second, he had me in his trunks, whipped me over his head and slammed me back to the ground. I didn’t even have time to struggle. I pulled open an eyelid to take one last look at mother earth. The only thing I saw was this huge pile of steaming hot elephant dung dropping on me.

My life shouldn’t end like this. I waited slowly until the dung beetles rolled the steaming hot elephant dung off me. I struggled to my knees and then to my feet. I cried and thanked the Lord for another chance to live. I croaked out loud “I will change my life!” I took a step forward but my body wouldn’t move. I heard breathing… or rather snorting. I turned around slowly. A gorilla was holding on to the remnants of my tshirt. I glared back defiantly. The gorilla snorted back & leaned his head against my face. I head butted him hoping that would surprise him. I was surprised by how hard his skull was. He put me in a headlock and tucked my head underneath his armpit. The stench was unbelievable and I started to gag.

My arms flailed against his back but he only tightened his grip. I thought my skull would explode. I started to black out. The only thing I could see was some numbers in red. 5…4… 3….2…1.

Finally, my workout was over. I’m sore, stinky, battered and my ass is sore from the squats and lunges. I hate working out. I really do.

Tonight, I get to do it all over again.

Sunday, June 29, 2008

Sun, 29 Jun 2008 23:27:19 GMT

I spent most of Fridays glued to my chair at home working. I was mentally exhausted when it finally finished. I spent most of Saturdays just relaxing with my bf. We also took in the Taste of Asia. It was interesting but very crowded. As soon as we got close, the unmistakable aroma of “smelly tofu”startled me. My bf and I looked at each other and grinned. I knew we would get into a debate eventually on what smelled worse, durian (I don’t eat it, he loves it), smelly tofu (we both don't eat it) or cheese (I eat most cheeses, he can’t stand the smell of it especially Parmesan).

Smelly tofu - the line up was pretty long.

A close up of the smelly tofu being deep fried.

More food....

They also had some new cars - not sure why but I guess the dealers were also sponsors.

The Lexus IS F (mmm....vroom, vroom)

Nissan 350Z (nice...)

Acura TSX (very interesting...)

There was a group called Grasshopper that played at dusk. I don’t know them except that they are from Hong Kong and were quite big back in the ‘80s and '90s. I didn’t bring my faster lens since it doesn’t fit into my old camera bag. I had to push these shots to 800 ISO. I was standing beside a very energetic middle aged woman. Her arms brushed by my lens a couple of times when she was dancing and her purse was scrunched against my privates. So when she jumped up and down and swayed with the music, I felt it. I had to squeeze my knapsack in between us for "protection".

I'll probably checkout the Toronto Night Market in a couple of weeks from now.

Overall, a relaxing time with my bf. I finished the weekend by having dinner with my family. It was good to laugh with everyone for a while and forget about the pressures of work.

What's in a Xanga name?

Sun, 22 Jun 2008 01:18:11 GMT

I sometimes wonder how you choose your Xanga name. Some are pretty obvious “John” is well, John. By the way, did you know he subscribes to 800 Xanga blogs? I subscribe to a bit over a hundred although some are dormant. ZSA_MD – when I first saw that name, I wondered if she was a doctor. Well – she is! I wonder if her children ever told her “I don’t feel well – I can’t go to school.” Brent has AppsScraps – hmm… I wonder if somewhere in there is his name. Sheldon’s Brooklyn2028 – I wonder if that was from some movie. Rob’s Fatcat723 – from what I remember is from a jazz singer. I like Mike’s Love_Eternal_Desire – pretty simple & straightforward message.

When Albert becomes a successful lawyer and a published author – I wonder if he will still use spacerboi? JonasApproved – well, it’s got his stamp of approval so it must be good. Zozoyork – now there’s an interesting one and a bit mysterious. Blizzardi – I have this image of a rum based cocktail. CareyGLY – apparently it’ll take ages to explain what GLY means. It can’t be his initials – perhaps it’s from a place or something to do with his gang of friends.

Bennykan – I think his is the only Xanga that I know of with his real name. Bleuzeus – a blue Greek god? *scratches head*. Gary’s curry69curry – either he likes curry while doing ahem… no, that can’t be it. Maybe Gary in Cantonese sounds like curry (ga-lay?) But what could that naughty 69 be? Christao408 – the Chris is obvious, but I wonder if he is Taoist? And 408? *shrugs*. Criticaldamage15 – here’s a mouthful and I think it’s from some game. Ambrose’s abcyeung – perhaps the ABC are his initials? Kevin has a slightly naughty one – Devilzgaysainboi. Perhaps he’ll change it now that he’s older. Dolphin27 – perhaps Patrick was 27 and thinking of a dolphin when he thought of this name. Jason’s gyjcwang – could the other letters be part of his name? Benson’s imagination probably was responsible for mmmgination. Lcfu – it’s fufu’s name! Kunhuo42 – I think this was Aaron’s Chinese name but I don’t remember what the 42 is. That’s probably how many degrees he’s going to get. Stevew918 – I’m sure the 918 is how many flights he takes in a year.

Trendyhedonism – now that’s a catchy name. ZenPaper – the name always intrigued me but I wished he updated more often. Vsan79 – I think Vsan is a play on his name and 79 is for 1979. Franco’s Tomatoboi – well he simply explains that his name in Cantonese sounds like tomato. GracePrince - an elegant name. And who knows how whonose came up with his name. I can see Tim in Apocatim but what does the rest mean? Twistedoff - hmm... I wonder what got twisted off?

As for me, ElusiveWords was simply me trying to describe one of my many writer’s block. And the former Onetonman – was simply a play on wonton mein, one of my favorite meals.

Ok – enough silliness for tonight. I know I miss quite a few names and there wasn't any slight intended. So how did you come about your Xanga name?

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Wed, 18 Jun 2008 22:22:15 GMT

For the most part, I enjoy living in my condo. There are the usual advantages (I don't have to shovel snow, no garden work, no exterior house work and there's security at the front door). There are several disadvantages. I have to be considerate of my neighbors so no loud music. Sometimes I do like to crank things up but I have to be careful. I also don't get any cross ventilation in my unit because all my windows (tiny ones) face the same direction. Unless it's really windy, it will take a while to air out my unit. So I have to open the door to create an airflow. I keep the door chain on though. One time, I was in the washroom finishing up and washing my hands when I heard voices right outside the door. It was my neighbors talking right outside my slightly open door while one of them was fishing for their key. I wonder if they heard anything... argh.

Parking is also a hassle . My condo only has a handful of visitors parking spots. It can be a pain sometimes. But the biggest pain are the inspections. The corporation has the right to come in an inspect your unit. They usually give you a week or two notice. They check the fire alarms, water leaks, structural stuff... but I hate it. I'm kinda messy so I have to clean things up. So guess what I'm doing tonight ... argh! I have to take all the stuff from my washer / dryer closet out so they can inspect that area. They left a note saying they may have to check inside my bedroom closet. Wah... where am I going to hide my "stuff"? Maybe I'll throw them into my oven or into one of my pots. Or maybe I should stay neat and tidy.

Here's something I picked up at the market. My little herb garden. Can you folks name all of them? Now I have to figure out some interesting things to do with them.