A Long Time Coming

November 19, 2012 Leave a comment

Corni & Me on Thanksgiving Day 2006.

 

The term closure has lately become persona non grata, especially when dealing with traumatic experiences and loss.  But when something like it occurs, a kind of catharsis does set in that may even  be required in order to move on.

In my “Lake House” blog entry, I mentioned in passing a late co-worker and friend, with whom I never got a chance to say the things I needed to say or even to bid goodbye.   Her name was Cornelia Rawls, and when I finally got a phone call from her brother, James, today, it was more than a message in a bottle, more like lightning–or should I say a lightening of the soul.

Lean On Me: Corni’s brother James.

 

 

We were definitely close personally and professionally, and James reminded me what it was that made our relationship, especially at work, meaningful.  Since I am back at our old workplace, I don’t feel quite as lost, understanding it is about doing the job well, respecting others and hanging in there when challenges arise.  Corni wasn’t one to suffer fools gladly either, and she certainly spoke her mind when she was wronged.  As I blaze a trail going forward,  as much as I miss her friendship, it’s some of her presence and guidance I am in need of the most.  But comforting is the fact her brother James is still around, and there is still more life to be lived.

Filed under In My Life, Philosophical, The Bay Area

As Autumn Beckons

September 30, 2012 3 Comments

I re-watched “The Lake House” this weekend about a man and a woman living two years apart.  He is trying to catch up to her, and she’s remembering moments that she has forgotten yet have significance in the choices she makes in the present.

2006 © Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

A month ago, I was back at my old workplace from six years ago in the same office park by the waterfront. In similar fashion as the movie’s character Kate, it felt surreal–comfortable in the sense I never left but that also things have changed.  For starters, I’ve gone through a transformation underscored by turning another decade old, in addition to the experience gained from jobs and assignments and new family members.

This center certainly has new clients yet retained stalwart familiar ones whom I haven’t forgotten and vice versa.  I used to characterize the cadre of business folks here like the denizens of Miami Beach, which The New York Times once cheekily referred to as having the highest concentration of beautiful people in the United States.  Resonating most, though, are the personal attachments with a few of my stellar managers and a co-worker who passed away after I had left the company.  Although we severed professional and even personal ties before her time came, I found myself reverently pointing to the chair she would have occupied when a client, whom we both knew, dropped by.  In a way, I do miss her.

And then there was the gorgeous golden retriever named Hanna who like clockwork would show up on the lawn, playing fetch with her owner at three in the afternoon when I would usually take a break.  She would come bounding toward me with a wet tennis ball in her teeth and her owner calling her name to return to him and to quit bothering strangers.

Jack and Kate: Dogs just know things.

However, in Hanna’s eyes, I was no such thing maybe because I used to wear a butterscotch-color coat that was similar to her own.  Judging from the huge smile on her lovely face, I was a friendly figure, and she was my savior during rough days.

So on a whim when 3 p.m. came around, I went out to the grassy area right outside the building where she would be frolicking, hoping to see her again.  Alas, Hanna was nowhere to be found.

The leads in “The Lake House” were Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock, but a particular mutt named Jack played a pivotal otherworldly role that Roger Ebert summed up best: “Now about that dog: Dogs live outside of time, don’t you think?”

Filed under In My Life, The Bay Area

An Olympic Spirit

July 29, 2012 Leave a comment

When I was a magazine writer, Olympic champion diver Victoria Manalo Draves was hands-down one of my favorite Olympians whom I had covered.  Delightful to speak with, she had the quintessential Olympic, as well as American, story.

In 2005, I got a call from the City College of San Francisco, asking for a copy of my article because it was honoring Mrs. Draves as outstanding alumna for that spring’s graduation class.  Five years later, she passed away at the age of 85.

All afternoon, I was looking for the beautifully handwritten card she sent me after my article was published that I kept on my desk, but I guess I had stored it when other things started to clutter up the space.  She was such a gracious person, and I am honored to have had gotten to know her, even for a moment for a little ole story.

Filed under In My Life, The Bay Area, Writing Tagged with , , , , , ,

Out of the Pantry, Into the Fire

May 14, 2012 Leave a comment

A lil more comfort food

It was one of those cooking-out-of-the-pantry weeks, after having to clean up a flooded bathroom before starting and going later into work.   What’s interesting is that I was previously on the phone with my friend Wendy that day, who was telling me how she makes her linguine and clams on the peppery side.  In a way this recipe is a little homage to her.

So for those situations that are beyond your control and sap a lot of your emotional energy, I give you my recipe for peppery & zesty linguine and clams with napa cabbage and bacon.

Note: This is “situational” cooking, and how it turns out depends on what happens as I am cooking, and the measurements are not necessarily hard and fast like baking.   I just remember not to burn the garlic or overcook the pasta and clams.

1 lb. linguine noodles
2 cloves garlic, sliced
a pinch or two of hot pepper flakes (pepperoncini)
1 can chopped clams & its juice
1/4 to 1/3 c. half & half
1/2 c. white wine
1 Tbsp. cream cheese schmear (optional)
1 Roma tomato, quartered & halfed
1/2 to 1 c. napa cabbage sliced
2 slices fried bacon, crumbled
salt and pepper to taste
fish stock (optional)

Cook the linguine noodles in boiling salted water.  In a saute pan, fry gently in a low heat garlic with the hot pepper flakes.  Increase heat a tad close to medium and add tomatoes.  Season with salt and pepper, and once the tomatoes start to soften, a pass or two of the white wine.  Burn the alcohol off a few seconds and pour in the can of clam juices only, reserving the clams.  Add the half & half and simmer, then the cream cheese, stirring to dissolve it in the pan.  Keep sauce at a simmer, but if it starts to tighten, spoon in some fish stock or the pasta water.  Drop in the napa cabbage and clams.  By this time, the linguine noodles should be at al dente, so with kitchen thongs add straight from the boiling pot to the sauce.  Liberally crack some black pepper over the top, toss and simmer until noodles are a little less al dente and the cabbage is soft.  Crumble in the bacon, toss and serve twirls of pasta onto a plate.

Filed under The Bay Area Tagged with , , ,

If I Could Turn Back Time

April 13, 2012 Leave a comment

Soup's Up: Bun Rieu

So I’ve been on a soup kick the last few weeks because it’s rainy and chilly in San Francisco.  But I just wanted to share one more that I tried from Soup Junkie, a pop-up food vendor that shows up on certain days in the Window on 1599 Howard and 12th Street and DaDa on 86 2nd Street on Market and Mission.  I arrived at DaDa just as the vendor was closing shop, but she graciously packed me up their signature Bun Rieu to go.  I was told the crab and tomato broth does settle and render itself salty after a few hours and to dilute the saltiness add more water.  Indeed, when I got home, I heated up the rich broth in a pot with a little more water and once it came up to the right temperature, poured it over the rice noodles, pork meatballs, water spinach and cilantro topped with a lovely crab omelette.

The last two weeks was a walk down memory lane when I was working at the PR firm Hill & Knowlton.  I used to work for the Regus Group, a business solutions company with properties around the world, and one of its centers was located in the neighborhood near Levi’s headquarters.  I took the opportunity to visit with my old manager and friend who gave me helpful advice.  As I took a shortcut through Levi’s Plaza to the Regus center, the Starbucks, where I used to take refuge, is still housed there, as well as RJs, the pricey grocery store and deli across the uneven, bumpy street I crossed on Sansome where I nearly killed myself in heels.  The thoughts that entered my mind were how most of my career was a baptism of fire, and now that I have a sense of perspective, I realize it is all a learning experience with plenty of interesting and funny stories behind it. 

For instance, the closest I came to ever working for Levi’s was temping in its accounting department and moving merchandise, even operating a forklift, in its factory now museum on Valencia Street.  The latter was a rare joy.  Not only was I comped a pair of pre-branded jeans, but how many could really say they walked the cavernous historical warehouse on their resumes.  Anyway, the point is if I had planned my career more strategically and had a mentor to guide me, I would probably be better off.  However, for someone so eager to be grown-up when I was in school, I would have missed out on meeting the people I encountered and unique moments as a younger worker in the jobforce.  I would lose out on the proverbial music between the notes put simply by John Lennon’s verity that life is what happens to you while you’re too busy making plans.

Filed under Brass Ring 2.0, The Bay Area Tagged with , , , , ,

Noodling in the City

March 30, 2012 Leave a comment

This month was a nice balance of contract, volunteer and networking opportunities, and I even squeezed in a bit of personal writing.  They are all learning experiences, which have also bolstered my confidence, and I believe will culminate in attaining that elusive job.  I worked a rather interesting conference, and it’s amazing how much they cost to attend.  I like to think my outings with my friend Wendy are mini-conferences that for a nominal fee I could get a fairly good return on my investment, especially where food and art is concerned.

We were back in the Mission at the art space, “Secret Alley,” for the release of Lucky Peach’s third issue (Cooks and Chefs) by McSweeney’s Publishing.  Chef Ryan Farrar of 4505 Meats and Magnolia Brewery provided scrumptious pork chicharrones and lovely brews.  Lucky Peach under the McSweeney’s imprimatur is the creation of New Yorkers Chef/Owner David Chang of Momofuku, writer Peter Meehan, and Zero Point Zero Production—producers of the Emmy Award–winning Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations.   It’s edgy food-writing with a literary bent a la Chef Bourdain.

Wendy and I hung out for as long as the pork snacks, pizza slices and beer could sustain us, after which we made a beeline for Nombe, the Japanese restaurant where we ended up when we were in the neighborhood last.  Its hand-made ramen wasn’t available at that time.  But thankfully, at least for us, the place this night wasn’t bursting at the seams.  We went ahead and ordered bowls for ourselves, and the noodles had that nice “chew” one would expect from such a dish.  Noodles in Asian culture signify a long life. However, in the short term, I will take a good month.

Filed under Brass Ring 2.0, The Bay Area Tagged with , , , , , , , ,

Comfort in Bones

February 22, 2012 Leave a comment

Vertebrate Street

After a rather tough month-long contract job, it was nice to be back in the city with an old friend for “Bones – 20th Street Corridor Crawl,” sponsored by Meatpaper magazine in the Mission a few weeks ago.

Wendy and I would often catch up during these events put together by the magazine, which were held in SFMOMA until last year.  Organizers decided to find other venues and, judging from this event, more creative ways to promote its mission as an art and meat culture journal.  The crawl deftly accomplished this goal, seamlessly weaving themes into an interactive performance art with its participants.  The 20th Street corridor south of Mission is rather industrial, dotted with small art galleries and restaurants, not the least of which include Flour + water.  So it made perfect sense.  Personally it gave me an opportunity to re-discover the Mission as an eating destination and to witness the “hipster” trend developing in the predominantly Latino enclave.

Nouvelle Art: A Dessert

Wendy and I started on Alabama Street at the soon-to-open Salumeria for the oxtail bone marrow and rabe arancini, delicate and lovely deep-fried risotto balls with a horseradish fonduta.   We worked our way up to Kadist Foundation on Folsom for Leah Rosenberg’s twist on dessert, gelatin layers of parsnips, carrots, beet and celery with a potent ginger root-beer cocktail.  It was a tight squeeze into Meatpaper/Rebar on Shotwell for Danish sandwiches from Bar Tartine.  As soon as Wendy and I had our nibble of pig’s ear, we headed toward Mission for David Wilson’s garage where a hot aluminum cauldron of soothing broth from 50 pounds of bones channeled the most basic form of cooking from a communal pot under a more-than-toasty fire.

After we had our fill of tastings, Wendy and I cooled our heels in a Japanese restaurant on Mission between 20th and 21st called Nombe, where I had grilled whole squid and eggplant and Wendy ordered egg custard with umi, a delightful savory dessert or palate cleanser to end our night out.  Despite our unique culinary excursion, Latin America is still the heart of the Mission, where, even on a late rainy evening, one could still grab a quick and tasty grub of dogs or sausages with sautéed peppers and onions from the makeshift flat-top of an undeterred street vendor.

Filed under The Bay Area Tagged with , , , , , , , , , ,

Bay Area Ingenuity

October 10, 2011 Leave a comment

Tech Titans: Last week's passing of Apple visionary Steve Jobs and the Oracle OpenWorld Conference

I had the pleasure of working the Oracle OpenWorld Conference last week, which turned the tourist area of Union Square and parts of SOMA in San Francisco into the center of the universe for techies from 117 different countries.  The big event was expected to bring $100 million into the city’s economy.

As a local, I don’t usually hang out with hordes of tourists, but I do have to eat.  I discovered a few tasty standouts that are quick and relatively affordable.  On the corner of 4th and Mission streets, Tokyo Express offers typical Japanese fare, including sushi, various bento boxes of teriyakis and katsus and donburi bowls.  I ordered the chicken basil.  When it came to me, I was pleasantly surprised how ample the portion was and the nuggets of batter-dipped, deep-fried chicken were rather light and crunchy.

Cravery serves handheld pot pies.  With seating next door, it is a tiny storefront a few doors from Mel’s Diner in the 5th and Mission Parking Garage.  A self-avowed carnivore, I chose the vegetarian curry with lentils instead, which turned out to be a nice alternative to meat.  When I’m back in the neighborhood, I would try the other intriguing fillings, such as creamy chicken and pepper steak.  Since the vendor also caters, I’m thinking how well they would pair with wine.  At a wine dinner this year, I remember having a divine truffle mushroom tart with white wine, the Rombauer 2009 Carneros Chardonnay and Newton 2007 Napa Valley Unfiltered Chardonnay, which were very dreamy.  It’s another product and lifestyle innovation at its best on display here in Northern California.

Filed under The Bay Area

Friends with Boundaries

August 10, 2011 Leave a comment

I have a close married friend who was also my co-worker.  When we go out together, people might think we’re together-TOGETHER, but of course we’re not, since we respect the obvious boundary:  He knows he’s married, and I know he’s married.  Maybe it’s because of that dynamic that we have such an honest and comfortable friendship.  He’s a fanatic about sports, like I am, most of all football—soccer to him, American grid-iron for me, and mutually, tennis.

Culturally there is also a familiarity.  Spain was the colonizer of our native birthplaces—the Philippines for me, South America for him.  And we also love food and traveling.  I have spent some of the most memorable times with him, for instance, following up the theater and a late-night supper with drinks at the Marriott’s “The View” room overlooking Market Street with the Bay Bridge in the distance.  Our exes, well, really his, occupied most of our conversation.

The last time I saw him was when he took me out for my birthday to a tapas place this year.  The original plan was oysters and wine at the local village wine bar, but when we started perusing through a tapas cookbook in my apartment, it was a no-brainer.  This time around we discussed his football and travel stories while he was in his teens, and he gave me a story idea.

A friend once told me she could not imagine a platonic relationship with anyone whom she was attracted to, married or otherwise.  I guess a part of me believes in living dangerously, or quite frankly I enjoy our friendship more than desiring to even go there.

Filed under In My Life, The Bay Area

My Brilliant Dating Career

July 8, 2011 Leave a comment

It was one of those low-maintenance Friday nights, in which there was no need to get gusseyed up to venture into the singles jungle, since I was simply going to my local village grocer, Canyon Market, for a wine-tasting of Bonny Doon wines from Santa Cruz, California.  But just like that I was transported back to the company of an old flame who introduced me to Le Cigar Volant, Bonny Doon’s whimsical red.  That night, an Albariño and Syrah were being offered, which were both lovely.  Later when I was at Bird & Beckett Books & Records up the street, walking through the old-fashion bookstore’s ever pregnant shelves while a live jazz band played Gershwin and Cole Porter, I spotted a record of the jazz great Thelonius Monk, the last CD I bought that same old beau.

It seems as though I am having a lot of those Marcel Proust moments lately, an object or thing evoking whole memories, like a business card of a French restaurant in Cow Hollow where I had dined with an insignificant other that, I discover, is now resurrected as an American bistro in the Castro.  Perusing through more business cards, I found one of a restaurant in New York City with a waiter’s contact information, which reminded me a rather complicated situation with the above-mentioned boo.

So now it’s time to change things up.  I recently met a published fiction writer whose stories are about young, volatile love.  There’s no such thing as deal-breakers but simply the torrid feelings between the two main characters.  Love goes through walls regardless of the circumstances.  I wish I believe it were so simple, but that isn’t my experience.   I was older when I was properly in love.  Heartbreak came and went, and I’ve learned to manage my expectations when it comes to relationships and dating.  I’ve tried e-harmony and internet dating.  In the 90s, there was, believe it or not, telepersonals.  The bars will never go out of style as well as meeting-cute on the streets or public transportation.  They’re really all a zero-sum game.

Dating isn’t my strong suit, but I realize I’m better hanging out with friends who are open to meeting other people or willing to introduce me to others while we’re out and about.  There’s no pressure or expectations, just pleasant conversation and sharing things we enjoy.   As much as I don’t mind remembrance of things past, the opportunities before me are also exciting.  It’s the thrill of something new, and if it happens that he’s an old soul who laughs easily and has a passion for living (as well as a fan of my beloved sports teams—well, this could be trained), then I suppose that’s a pretty good place to start.

Filed under In My Life, The Bay Area

← Older posts

Newer posts →