Tuesday, March 24, 2009
sadness
today, while waiting for my flight at the denver airport, i came across the obituary for nicholas hughes in the new york times. he had hung himself. i was surprised to find myself on the verge of tears reading about his life. having grown up surrounded by so much tragedy (his mother, sylvia plath, the famous poet committed suicide, and his stepmother committed murder suicide with his stepsister), it made me wonder if he had ever lived a moment of his life without pain. maybe that was why he was attracted to fishery, having been a fisheries biologist in alaska. creatures so simple and beautiful, not having to endure sadness, an instinctive bond to travel and stay with others in schools, it's poetic to have chosen that field of work and life, a life of being in and near water, the tranquility of nature. he left behind his sister, frieda. i hope she has found or will continue to find something to live for and hold onto it.
Saturday, March 14, 2009
afternoon at the post office
the last document finally arrived in the mail today to complete my set of tax materials to send to my accountant. i found it in the mail box at around 3p. so i immediately printed out my other finalized documents and organized what i needed to make copies of. i ran to kinko's down the block. then, i ran down a few more blocks to the post office.
when i arrived, there were two long lines of people, each at least ten deep. i quickly stuffed, labeled, and sealed a priority mail envelope and hopped in one of the lines. i picked the one being served by three open windows than the line for only two open windows. while i waited, i noticed that an elderly gentleman a couple of people ahead of me was extremely chatty. he was mostly commenting on the number of people in the post office today. it was around 4p on a friday so the lines were not a surprise. then, i realized he was talking to the guy with facial piercings in front of him specifically.
it turned out that guy with the piercings had to catch a flight and was getting antsy about the wait. the elderly man, in his eastern european accent, began to ask every person ahead of them in line if they would allow the guy with the piercings to cut in front of them. someone started chuckling as the elderly man was making the small scene. i thought it was very brave and thoughtful of elderly man to make the effort to help a stranger. everyone yielded.
the guy with the piercings received instructions from the postal worker at the window to package item appropriately and set off to do so. the elderly man kept watching over him and pointing out how he needed to put more tape on the box. it was as if he had taken on this stranger on as his own son. the guy with the piercings finally finished sending out his package and thanked the elderly man on his way out. the elderly man, then, took his turn at the window and started to chat up the postal worker at the window.
the guy ahead of me in line noticed that the elderly man was just chatting too. he waited until the elderly man had finished his transaction and impatiently walked up to the window to nudge him out of the way. the elderly man didn't take offense at all; he actually apologized for talking too much as he left.
as i waited my turn and witnessed this commotion, i realized that this post office is one of the few in the city that does not have the bullet-proof glass windows. you can hand the postal worker your package directly, not through a cage. the postal worker who helped me was a little annoyed at first when i did not know the amount of stamps i had place on the envelope. there was a set of first class stamps the post office sold that did not indicate their value so i could not tabulate the stamps. it turned out that i still owed a little bit more. as we tried to figure out how to make up for the difference, whether to add more stamps that i had with me or just pay, i made a comment that i will do which ever was the fastest because the people behind me in line were getting agitated. then, the postal worker actually laughed and said that you can never please those people. it was as if she melted from an icy postal worker into a warm human being. we exchanged a pleasant good bye, and as i left the window, i heard grumblings about the long lines. i want to say to these people, "this is new york on a friday afternoon. of course there will be long lines. everyone is doing their best, and there's nothing you can do. you might as well just make the best of it." but i didn't. i would just sound naive and annoyingly cheerful. so i exited the building and hurried back to my apartment.
when i arrived, there were two long lines of people, each at least ten deep. i quickly stuffed, labeled, and sealed a priority mail envelope and hopped in one of the lines. i picked the one being served by three open windows than the line for only two open windows. while i waited, i noticed that an elderly gentleman a couple of people ahead of me was extremely chatty. he was mostly commenting on the number of people in the post office today. it was around 4p on a friday so the lines were not a surprise. then, i realized he was talking to the guy with facial piercings in front of him specifically.
it turned out that guy with the piercings had to catch a flight and was getting antsy about the wait. the elderly man, in his eastern european accent, began to ask every person ahead of them in line if they would allow the guy with the piercings to cut in front of them. someone started chuckling as the elderly man was making the small scene. i thought it was very brave and thoughtful of elderly man to make the effort to help a stranger. everyone yielded.
the guy with the piercings received instructions from the postal worker at the window to package item appropriately and set off to do so. the elderly man kept watching over him and pointing out how he needed to put more tape on the box. it was as if he had taken on this stranger on as his own son. the guy with the piercings finally finished sending out his package and thanked the elderly man on his way out. the elderly man, then, took his turn at the window and started to chat up the postal worker at the window.
the guy ahead of me in line noticed that the elderly man was just chatting too. he waited until the elderly man had finished his transaction and impatiently walked up to the window to nudge him out of the way. the elderly man didn't take offense at all; he actually apologized for talking too much as he left.
as i waited my turn and witnessed this commotion, i realized that this post office is one of the few in the city that does not have the bullet-proof glass windows. you can hand the postal worker your package directly, not through a cage. the postal worker who helped me was a little annoyed at first when i did not know the amount of stamps i had place on the envelope. there was a set of first class stamps the post office sold that did not indicate their value so i could not tabulate the stamps. it turned out that i still owed a little bit more. as we tried to figure out how to make up for the difference, whether to add more stamps that i had with me or just pay, i made a comment that i will do which ever was the fastest because the people behind me in line were getting agitated. then, the postal worker actually laughed and said that you can never please those people. it was as if she melted from an icy postal worker into a warm human being. we exchanged a pleasant good bye, and as i left the window, i heard grumblings about the long lines. i want to say to these people, "this is new york on a friday afternoon. of course there will be long lines. everyone is doing their best, and there's nothing you can do. you might as well just make the best of it." but i didn't. i would just sound naive and annoyingly cheerful. so i exited the building and hurried back to my apartment.
Friday, March 13, 2009
last days in nola
i returned to new york a couple of days ago with some pretty delicious last meals from new orleans. we made it to dick and jenny's and were presented with a new spring 2009 menu. it was a great menu, but we felt a little sore that we had missed their previous menu just days before. to think that we could've tried their winter 2008 AND spring 2009 menus! but we sucked it up and ordered their louisiana seafood pie, grilled beef tenderloin, bronzed flounder, and key lime pie. i'm just realizing we started and ended the meal with pies! it guaranteed us a great meal, which it was. all our plates were pretty much cleaned up even though i know you're supposed to leave a bite of food to be polite. but we could not waste even a morsel of food that's so delicious.
it turned out that r had to work the last saturday i was in town. we went to elizabeth's, a local joint, for breakfast. their specialty is poached eggs, which is my favorite. i had it with fried green tomatoes and hash browns. r had the carolina shrimp and grits. one of my eggs were poached hard and the other one soft, which i found a little odd, but the overall meal was good. r's food was really good; the broth in the shrimp and grits made the dish.
later that evening, we ended up forgoing jacque-imo's to join r's work friends to see the watchmen. we were all uncertain what to think of the movie at the end of the viewing. i'd only gotten into about a quarter of the novel a couple of years ago when i had to leave town for a job (actually the job on which i met r) and suspect that the story might be a tough one to translate well on-screen because it's so unconventional. there isn't one character to follow, and the story is so hypothetical, almost as if as a movie, the story became too real to digest whereas it's easier to accept as a graphic novel. we thought the design elements (sets, costumes) were very intriguing though, framed around a world in which nixon was still president in the 80s.
the next morning, r took me to the airport. i came back to new york and started missing r again.
it turned out that r had to work the last saturday i was in town. we went to elizabeth's, a local joint, for breakfast. their specialty is poached eggs, which is my favorite. i had it with fried green tomatoes and hash browns. r had the carolina shrimp and grits. one of my eggs were poached hard and the other one soft, which i found a little odd, but the overall meal was good. r's food was really good; the broth in the shrimp and grits made the dish.
later that evening, we ended up forgoing jacque-imo's to join r's work friends to see the watchmen. we were all uncertain what to think of the movie at the end of the viewing. i'd only gotten into about a quarter of the novel a couple of years ago when i had to leave town for a job (actually the job on which i met r) and suspect that the story might be a tough one to translate well on-screen because it's so unconventional. there isn't one character to follow, and the story is so hypothetical, almost as if as a movie, the story became too real to digest whereas it's easier to accept as a graphic novel. we thought the design elements (sets, costumes) were very intriguing though, framed around a world in which nixon was still president in the 80s.
the next morning, r took me to the airport. i came back to new york and started missing r again.
Friday, March 06, 2009
thanksgiving 2008
r took me to orlando, fl this past thanksgiving to spend the holiday with his family. his gravitation to new york city stems from having grown up on a ranch/farm; he felt he had already lived the rural lifestyle and wanted to experience the urban life. i had met his mother on her visits to new york and a previous short trip to orlando but had never seen her ranch, located just outside of orlando. i am just realizing i didn't take any pictures of her place! argh!
she has two horses (at the time, she had three, but one of them passed away around christmas so she now has two), four border collies (r's favorite breed), a parakeet, and a greenhouse where she has been growing ponytail palms as a business venture. she lives there by herself and takes care of the entire six acres pretty much single-handedly when she isn't on nurse duty at the local hospital or teaching at the community college.
her parents and sisters live around the orlando area and convened at her house for thanksgiving. i found it kind of odd but endearing that they all kept commenting on my prettiness. i guess it's a southern politeness, but i would've thought that being a nice person is more important for r's well-being and happiness than being a pretty girl. but it's one of life's graces to learn to accept compliments.
with the exception of r and me, having just traveled the evening before, everyone contributed to the meal which was delicious. i might've even had too much turkey because i had to excuse myself for a three-hour nap.
later in the day, r met up with an old friend from high school while i stayed at his mom's house and looked through some old photographs and newspaper clippings from his childhood. the local newspaper had a picture of r in the eighth grade, standing next to a mural he had painted at his middle school, something he had initiated at that young age. i was so impressed he had this drive and focus to make art so early on in life; he had never mentioned the mural to me before. r's mom also showed me other pictures of his earlier artwork which included winning prizes at regional shows and having been commissioned by local businesses. i felt a little overwhelmed by how deeply his love for art has always been.
the next day, we took his grandmother out for lunch, a break from her nursing home, and to visit his other set of grandparents in their new home. they had become great friends once they had become in-laws, and the friendship lasted even into r's grandmother's dementia. she became so alive as soon as she saw her old friends and reminisced about their younger days. we went for a short walk to the edge of lake apopka. the waters are now polluted, from having been treated as a chemical dumping ground, but had once been a huge fishing attraction, particularly for bass. the community and government are slowly working to clean up the lake. it is a peaceful neighborhood that i hope r's grandparents will enjoy.
for our last day of the trip, r took me to new smyrna beach. r had grown up going to jb's fishcamp and restaurant with his father who knew the owner, jb. he has always stated that their crabcakes were unbeatable. knowing that i shared his love of seafood, we feasted there. the restaurant draws almost all of their seafood from the water just behind the building:
people docking at the restaurant for a meal
we had our sleeves rolled up and dug into oysters, crabcakes, grilled fish, hush puppies, steamed shrimp, and steamed crabs. it was all fresh off the boat, simply prepared as to not ruin fresh seafood, and incredibly delicious. after our huge meal, we went for a walk along the beach. the sun happened to be on the verge of setting so the sky flushed with hints of pinks:
birds running from the waves
then poking their beaks into the sand as the waves retrieve
someone fishing
he might've caught something!
birds teaming up for their hunt for food in this turbulent setting of crashing waves
more birds
amazing sky at sunset
an unexpectedly romantic setting
our foot prints
imagining if we owned one of these houses and got to see sunsets like this every evening...
when we returned to the parking lot, we spotted these old cars:
i bet these drivers all know each other and decided to get together for some great seafood at jb's and discuss their cars and whatnot.
we left early the next morning, having this incredible day as our freshest memory of the trip. it was a lot of fun, but part of me felt a little guilty for not having spent this holiday with my family. but annual holidays are just like birthdays: they will come along next year. there will be opportunities to spend them differently over and over again. maybe next year, r will get to try my mom's awesome chinese cooking.
she has two horses (at the time, she had three, but one of them passed away around christmas so she now has two), four border collies (r's favorite breed), a parakeet, and a greenhouse where she has been growing ponytail palms as a business venture. she lives there by herself and takes care of the entire six acres pretty much single-handedly when she isn't on nurse duty at the local hospital or teaching at the community college.
her parents and sisters live around the orlando area and convened at her house for thanksgiving. i found it kind of odd but endearing that they all kept commenting on my prettiness. i guess it's a southern politeness, but i would've thought that being a nice person is more important for r's well-being and happiness than being a pretty girl. but it's one of life's graces to learn to accept compliments.
with the exception of r and me, having just traveled the evening before, everyone contributed to the meal which was delicious. i might've even had too much turkey because i had to excuse myself for a three-hour nap.
later in the day, r met up with an old friend from high school while i stayed at his mom's house and looked through some old photographs and newspaper clippings from his childhood. the local newspaper had a picture of r in the eighth grade, standing next to a mural he had painted at his middle school, something he had initiated at that young age. i was so impressed he had this drive and focus to make art so early on in life; he had never mentioned the mural to me before. r's mom also showed me other pictures of his earlier artwork which included winning prizes at regional shows and having been commissioned by local businesses. i felt a little overwhelmed by how deeply his love for art has always been.
the next day, we took his grandmother out for lunch, a break from her nursing home, and to visit his other set of grandparents in their new home. they had become great friends once they had become in-laws, and the friendship lasted even into r's grandmother's dementia. she became so alive as soon as she saw her old friends and reminisced about their younger days. we went for a short walk to the edge of lake apopka. the waters are now polluted, from having been treated as a chemical dumping ground, but had once been a huge fishing attraction, particularly for bass. the community and government are slowly working to clean up the lake. it is a peaceful neighborhood that i hope r's grandparents will enjoy.
for our last day of the trip, r took me to new smyrna beach. r had grown up going to jb's fishcamp and restaurant with his father who knew the owner, jb. he has always stated that their crabcakes were unbeatable. knowing that i shared his love of seafood, we feasted there. the restaurant draws almost all of their seafood from the water just behind the building:
people docking at the restaurant for a meal
we had our sleeves rolled up and dug into oysters, crabcakes, grilled fish, hush puppies, steamed shrimp, and steamed crabs. it was all fresh off the boat, simply prepared as to not ruin fresh seafood, and incredibly delicious. after our huge meal, we went for a walk along the beach. the sun happened to be on the verge of setting so the sky flushed with hints of pinks:
birds running from the waves
then poking their beaks into the sand as the waves retrieve
someone fishing
he might've caught something!
birds teaming up for their hunt for food in this turbulent setting of crashing waves
more birds
amazing sky at sunset
an unexpectedly romantic setting
our foot prints
imagining if we owned one of these houses and got to see sunsets like this every evening...
when we returned to the parking lot, we spotted these old cars:
i bet these drivers all know each other and decided to get together for some great seafood at jb's and discuss their cars and whatnot.
we left early the next morning, having this incredible day as our freshest memory of the trip. it was a lot of fun, but part of me felt a little guilty for not having spent this holiday with my family. but annual holidays are just like birthdays: they will come along next year. there will be opportunities to spend them differently over and over again. maybe next year, r will get to try my mom's awesome chinese cooking.
Thursday, March 05, 2009
new orleans again
r started a job in new orleans last week, and i've been here since last friday just to keep him company and make the transition easier for him. he's gotten at least one job per year in nola since 2004. it's pretty ridiculous considering he's based out of new york.
since i've arrived, it's been a series of deja vu. luckily, i had just missed mardi gras. it's not so much fun when you can't drink so you actually notice all the vomiting that occurs around you. also, strings of beads being pelted at your head is scary. but the company that hired r this time placed him in the same hotel as the last company who hired him. in fact, we think he had been placed in the same room last year.
r had been looking for a place to move to so that he wouldn't have to spend all three months of his stay in nola in a hotel. last night, he signed the lease and received the key to a loft apartment just blocks away. so we decided to go ahead and make the move. the act of moving out of the hotel was also oddly familiar since we had done the same thing last year, after having stayed at that hotel, possibly that same room, for a while. but this apartment is one that r hasn't stayed at before although the color scheme and style of furniture resembles that of one of the apartments we lived in last year.
while r is at work during the day, i've been roaming around the area a bit. everything is still pretty much the same as last year although the city feels more deserted this time. maybe i'm not remembering well, but i thought there had been more pedestrians in the french quarters, more tourists. i've heard there's been a spike in crime (a serial rapist who targeted tulane female students was caught not long ago) so i've been more cautious in my current ventures. (to be fair, however, there's been a spike in crime in new york as well. but on second thought, new york does not have a feeling of desolation in the middle of the day.)
but the mission for this trip is to revisit all the delicious restaurants. our first stop was herbsaint where we had baked oysters and beef short rib on potato cake as our appetizers and moved onto their special of flouder with pickled turnips and greens and their duck leg confit with louisiana rice. the meal was superb.
the next day, a saturday, r had to work. total bummer. but we met for lunch near his office at juan's flying burrito. we shared chips and guacamole which tasted freshly prepared. then, he had the western chicken burrito, and i had the super green burrito with lots of delicious veggies.
later that evening, after going through our list, we hit cochon, which is owned and run by the same chef, donald link, as herbsaint. we really had to rein ourselves from over-ordering and settled on sharing the fried boudin, fried rabbit livers, paneed pork cheeks, their mahi-mahi special small plate, the ham hock entree with sweet potatoes, pickled greens, and black-eyed peas, and a side of lima beans. i actually prefer cochon over herbsaint because it seems to have a more casual atmosphere, and the food is more adventurous. the mahi-mahi special was probably the least impressive although still delicious. everything else had the perfect balance of meatiness, sweetness, and acidity. i love that this place makes use of all parts of the pig to their fullest ability, and their menu reflects that.
the next day, we started off with brunch at surrey's cafe and juice bar, which had become a weekly routine last year. i believe their orange-pineapple juice is a staple on their menu, but they had a special cactus juice that r tried. it was super refreshing, just slightly sweet. r went with one of their daily specials, a mexican frittata, and i chose the migas with chorizos. the food is just as fresh and delicious as i remembered it.
that evening, we finally got vietnamese food. with the except of three afternoons, r and i had vietnamese at kim anh's for lunch everyday. so i associated incredible vietnamese food with nola in that twisted way (as opposed to cajun cuisine). we went to tan dinh on the west bank and walked out satisfied, r with pho ga and i with korean bbq ribs bun in the tummy and leftover roasted pork in a flour roll.
early in the week, we walked a couple of blocks to lucy's for convenient yet delicious fish tacos. i felt a little guilty for getting them since grouper is one of the fish you should avoid, but i got over it quickly. there's a reason that the chinese rates grouper as one of the most edible worthy fish.
and last night, we finally made the trip to kim anh's for vietnamese egg rolls and combination pho with sliced beef, meatballs, and chicken. it gave us the strength and motivation to rush back to the hotel, pack, and move everything of ours to the loft apartment. kim anh's has possibly the best pho. the broth is so rich in flavor, and the quality of their food is consistent. i only wish they had a branch within walking distance of the warehouse district so that i could repeat the daily feasting of their food this time around.
the places we have left on the list to taste are dick and jenny's and jacques-imo's. of course, if we have the time, i'll take mona's cafe and lebanon's cafe for some great hummus and falafels. the gastronomic adventures of nola is to be continued.
since i've arrived, it's been a series of deja vu. luckily, i had just missed mardi gras. it's not so much fun when you can't drink so you actually notice all the vomiting that occurs around you. also, strings of beads being pelted at your head is scary. but the company that hired r this time placed him in the same hotel as the last company who hired him. in fact, we think he had been placed in the same room last year.
r had been looking for a place to move to so that he wouldn't have to spend all three months of his stay in nola in a hotel. last night, he signed the lease and received the key to a loft apartment just blocks away. so we decided to go ahead and make the move. the act of moving out of the hotel was also oddly familiar since we had done the same thing last year, after having stayed at that hotel, possibly that same room, for a while. but this apartment is one that r hasn't stayed at before although the color scheme and style of furniture resembles that of one of the apartments we lived in last year.
while r is at work during the day, i've been roaming around the area a bit. everything is still pretty much the same as last year although the city feels more deserted this time. maybe i'm not remembering well, but i thought there had been more pedestrians in the french quarters, more tourists. i've heard there's been a spike in crime (a serial rapist who targeted tulane female students was caught not long ago) so i've been more cautious in my current ventures. (to be fair, however, there's been a spike in crime in new york as well. but on second thought, new york does not have a feeling of desolation in the middle of the day.)
but the mission for this trip is to revisit all the delicious restaurants. our first stop was herbsaint where we had baked oysters and beef short rib on potato cake as our appetizers and moved onto their special of flouder with pickled turnips and greens and their duck leg confit with louisiana rice. the meal was superb.
the next day, a saturday, r had to work. total bummer. but we met for lunch near his office at juan's flying burrito. we shared chips and guacamole which tasted freshly prepared. then, he had the western chicken burrito, and i had the super green burrito with lots of delicious veggies.
later that evening, after going through our list, we hit cochon, which is owned and run by the same chef, donald link, as herbsaint. we really had to rein ourselves from over-ordering and settled on sharing the fried boudin, fried rabbit livers, paneed pork cheeks, their mahi-mahi special small plate, the ham hock entree with sweet potatoes, pickled greens, and black-eyed peas, and a side of lima beans. i actually prefer cochon over herbsaint because it seems to have a more casual atmosphere, and the food is more adventurous. the mahi-mahi special was probably the least impressive although still delicious. everything else had the perfect balance of meatiness, sweetness, and acidity. i love that this place makes use of all parts of the pig to their fullest ability, and their menu reflects that.
the next day, we started off with brunch at surrey's cafe and juice bar, which had become a weekly routine last year. i believe their orange-pineapple juice is a staple on their menu, but they had a special cactus juice that r tried. it was super refreshing, just slightly sweet. r went with one of their daily specials, a mexican frittata, and i chose the migas with chorizos. the food is just as fresh and delicious as i remembered it.
that evening, we finally got vietnamese food. with the except of three afternoons, r and i had vietnamese at kim anh's for lunch everyday. so i associated incredible vietnamese food with nola in that twisted way (as opposed to cajun cuisine). we went to tan dinh on the west bank and walked out satisfied, r with pho ga and i with korean bbq ribs bun in the tummy and leftover roasted pork in a flour roll.
early in the week, we walked a couple of blocks to lucy's for convenient yet delicious fish tacos. i felt a little guilty for getting them since grouper is one of the fish you should avoid, but i got over it quickly. there's a reason that the chinese rates grouper as one of the most edible worthy fish.
and last night, we finally made the trip to kim anh's for vietnamese egg rolls and combination pho with sliced beef, meatballs, and chicken. it gave us the strength and motivation to rush back to the hotel, pack, and move everything of ours to the loft apartment. kim anh's has possibly the best pho. the broth is so rich in flavor, and the quality of their food is consistent. i only wish they had a branch within walking distance of the warehouse district so that i could repeat the daily feasting of their food this time around.
the places we have left on the list to taste are dick and jenny's and jacques-imo's. of course, if we have the time, i'll take mona's cafe and lebanon's cafe for some great hummus and falafels. the gastronomic adventures of nola is to be continued.
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