Currently re-reading TBLBITW...

I'm currently re-reading Andrew Tobias' The Best Little Boy in the World..

If there's one book that really influenced me during that period when I was asking myself a lot of things, it has to be this book.

On my last visit to Manila, I brought back with me some books that I love and one of them is TBLBITW.

The book has been with me for more than a decade. If I'm not mistaken, I found it buried in one of the bargain bins of National Bookstore Robinson's Manila. It was an afternoon. I had time to kill. One of my favorite past time activities is to go book hunting. Voila! I found the book.

Until now, I believe that the book was meant to find me and I was meant to find it. Hehe!

With no new titles to read, I decided why not re-read it again?

Uneventful Monday, or so I thought....

Today was quite an uneventful Monday.

It did start on a very good note though. I have two very efficient colleagues to thank for this. Long story short, some people screwed up the order of a very important client. How these people managed to screw up such very simple instructions just baffles me. Technically, I should not be involved in the situation because the issue is outside of my department. However, the client copied me in the email since we worked together previously.

So, last Friday, I reached out to these colleagues desperately asking them to move mountains just to meet the request of the client. Our biggest hurdle was time. The client needed some copies of his work delivered to a specific location by today. My two colleagues told me they could not guarantee anything. We just hope for the best.

This morning, when I checked my email, I was extremely, extremely happy to see that the materials reached the client on time. Yahoooo!

I told my manager about the whole incident. I also told her that technically, this was outside of my job scope. It wasn't because I was complaining. I understood how serious the errors were. I understood that the mistake can have implications on our company's relationship with the client's organisation. I just wanted to make sure that I wasn't to be blamed for anything because I was the one the client emailed. My manager just said, "Well, it's because we always solve things!"

In a way, it's true. I'm just really glad that the crisis was resolved! Phew! This morning, I made sure that I thanked my two colleagues over and over! Hehe!

Hmm, what else happened during the day? I started the day by going to the grocery to buy items for the week. There is something therapeutic about doing the grocery on an early morning. I find it relaxing because the supermarket is not crowded at all. I also enjoy doing the self-checkout. I like scanning my items and bagging them. Hehe!

I also had to pass by an AXS machine to pay for SG-KL-SG flight I booked for my holiday with Mama this end of June. I'm sooooo looking forward to it.

Noontime, I spent an hour talking with a new Japanese teacher on italki. I stopped my italki sessions with my previous teacher because work got extremely busy. I decided to try a new teacher just to see if he's any better. I really like my previous language teacher but I also like this current one. First, he uses the book that I have so we can work on exercise together. Second, he uses a headset so conversation is clearer. Third, he can adjust his speech pace to a pace I can understand. Since the session today went well, I decided to book another session with him for next week. Let's see how it'll go.

In the evening, I just went to the gym for Pump. I did Pump yesterday, but I thought I'll do it again today. Hehe! Before going to the gym, I passed by the bookstore because I wanted to buy some nice pens and a mechanical pencil. I saw the Kuru Toga pencils I've been looking for. My mistake was I didn't check the "Made in..." section of the packaging because I was too excited. On my way home, I was inspecting the pencil and to my disappointment, it wasn't the pencil I was looking for. Sigh. Need to continue looking. Haha!

Now, I'm updating the iOS on my phone while I blog. My phone keeps getting the No SIM installed error message. I read some articles on this error and one recommendation was to do an iOS update. Let's hope it solves the issue. Haha!

Oh, lastly, the Kindle is back to life. After a two-month break from reading, I finally found the time and the title to read again. A fellow museum guide reco'd Sarah Thornton's Seven Days in the Art World. It's very fitting since I'm going through the training for an art museum. Lol! Last night, I found the time to top up my Amazon card balance so I can purchase the ebook. This evening, I started to read while waiting for Pump registration. I'm enjoying it so far.

Whew! Reading this post now, it seems like a lot happened during today. Haha!

Random blah about TMR...

I'm currently reading James Dashner's The Maze Runner.

Compared to Donna Tartt's The Goldfinch, TMR is an extremely easy read.

Perhaps because it is meant for a younger crowd. Perhaps because the author does not use words like "censorious," "trepidation," "redolent," "supercilious," "bilious," "crackerjack," and so on. Haha! Perhaps because the story flows very well.

On a side note, I do like it when I encounter words I don't use in my ordinary conversations. The good thing about the Kindle is that I can highlight the word and bookmark it. What would be even better is for me to write down all these new words in a notebook. I ought to include it in my daily convos I suppose. Haha!

Going back to the book, I was able to cover 80% in a matter of 4 days. I can't even write how long it took me to cover a quarter of The Goldfinch. Haha!

It's a good thing that I decided to start reading TMR after The Goldfinch. The former serves as a good break before I read another Dickensian work like The Goldfinch. Haha!

One more good thing about TMR is that it is part of a trilogy with a prequel. Hence, the need need to think about what book to read next is swiftly eliminated. Haha!

How faithful was the movie to the book? Hmm, I would say that the movie has significant differences compared to the book. The basic storyline is there. The execution is highly different. I am glad that I am reading the book now. It allows me to pinpoint the differences between the movie storyline and the book storyline.

The recent trilogies I have read are The Hunger Games, Divergent and now, The Maze Runner. First place goes to The Hunger Games, obviously. In terms of good book and good movie, it would have to go to The Maze Runner. That leaves the third place to Divergent. I enjoyed the movie very much. I couldn't say the same about the books. In particular, Insurgent was an excruciating read. Haha!

Thankfully, I'm done with the series. Thankfully, TMR is turning out to be much better. Let's see how the second and third book, as well as the prequel, are.

Ten Books...

It looks like there's a new meme going around on Facebook. Haha! I remember there was a time when people were using the Notes feature a lot, answering all these memes and tagging friends.

On my way to work this morning, I was reading my FB notifications and I saw that my friend Noreen tagged me in a post.

The rule of the meme is simple. List down 10 books that have had an effect on your life (or something like that). Tag It's not a very easy task for me as I have a lot of favourite books. Haha! What I did was to recall those titles that have really left a lasting impression on me.

In no particular order, here are my 10 books:



The Best Little Boy in the World - Andrew Tobias



Rainbow Boys - Alex Sanchez



Cubao 1980 - Tony Perez



Bata, Bata Pano Ka Ginawa - Lualhati Bautista



The Way - Josemaria Escriva



Grace: A Memoir - Grace Coddington



Last Summer - Michael Thomas Ford



Elements of Style - Strunk and White



Chronicles of Narnia - C.S. Lewis



The Adventures of Kavalier and Clay - Michael Chabon

That one line...

I've said it before - one of my personal gauges on how good a movie is is if there are any lines that are worth remembering.

If I have no takeaway from the movie, then it's just a so so movie for me. (Unless it's an ultra-cheesy drama/romcom, I'm okay with it - memorable lines or no memorable lines. Hehe!)

My friend Noreen who writes for one of the biggest TV networks back in Manila wrote that one of her dreams is to be able to write a (film?) script which has that one line - that one line which hundred, thousands of people who watched the film will remember.

Secretly (or not so secretly now), I have the same wanting. Hehe!

I am seriously amazed and impressed by people who have a gift with words. That's why when I really like a certain film, I dun quickly get up and leave after the film ends. I would wait for the name of the writer to appear as the end credits begin to appear. I guess that's my way of telling the writer "You did a great job."

Recently, I stumbled upon the trailer of The Perks of Being A Wallflower - a film based on a novel with the same title that will soon hit the cinemas in Singapore.

After watching the trailer, I already knew that I would have to see the film and get the book. I'm not sure when the movie will be showing, but I did get the book today at Kino.

I would have the time for it this Wednesday since I have a few hours to kill at the Kuala Lumpur airport, while waiting for flight to Yangon.

Above is one of the memorable lines from the film/novel.

Can't wait to start the pages.

Titles to read for early 2011...

Look what's happily piled on the side of my bed and waiting to be read. Haha!

These will keep me busy when I get home in the evening from work this coming first quarter of 2011. Yey! :)

I just finished Michael Thomas Ford's The Road Home, which Tey bought for me when she went to the US a couple of weeks ago. I didn't like it as much as the other four MTF titles I've read, but it's still going to my prized books list. Before that, I was reading Mineko Iwasaki's Geisha, a Life. The book/autobiography gives the reader a wonderful peek into the world of maikos and geishas. Beautiful book.

As you can see, I have another MTF title waiting to be read. I just dunno if I should already start on that, or if I should choose another title.

The Maupin was a fantab buy because I got it at Fully Booked at a really, really cheap price. Haha! Found it in the bargain bin. It's in very good condition though.

The Kabul Beauty School caught my attention because I remember reading in a previous issue of US Vogue the story of a woman who went to Afghanistan to teach hair and makeup to the local women. It should be an interesting read. (See, I can go beyond Kinsella and Weisenberger chick lit. Haha!)

Meanwhile, Alek was meant for me. I've been looking for the book for the longest time and I stumbled upon the copy above when I went to Bibliarch just last week to get presents for the barkadings. Alek is the story of Sudanese refugee turned international supermodel Alek Wek. Again, this should be an interesting read.

Bringing Home the Birkin is something I've had for so long. Bought it at Fully Booked in Gateway ages ago. I just still haven't found the time to read it because Angelina Jolie's Notes from My Travels and Dana Thomas's Deluxe caught my interest more. Hehe! Promise to read Tonello's book this 2011.

Lastly, the Mitch Albom and the Khaled Hosseini titles are gifts from my Twitter friend/running-muay thai friend Jamie. He was so generous to give away several titles a couple of weeks ago, and I'm just so happy that I bagged the said titles.

So these are the titles on my to-read list this coming early 2011. Excited. How about you? What's on your to-read list?

Brought home a "Birkin" last night...

Eat your heart out!

I brought home a Birkin last night. A Birkin and a lady I would happily switch teams for in a heartbeat! Haha!

Work colleagues and I arrived in Manila from Nasugbu around 7 in the. Since I didn't want to go home yet because I was scared of Saturday night traffic, I decided to go see Valentine's Day first. Most of my colleagues already had plans except for Haydee. She was flying back to Davao today . Since her hotel was near the mall, I asked if she wanted to go see the movie.

While waiting for screening time, we hung out at the Fully Booked in GB 5. I haven't been to a bookstore for quite some time now. Before, I used to spend an entire half day in Powerbooks or Fully Booked. I would lose track of time because I would be so engrossed into the books.

The last books I bought were Tommy's Tale by Alan Cumming from Books for Less and Remember Me by Sophie Kinsella from Fully Booked. Yeah, I'm a sucker for LGBT lit and chick lit. Haha! Friend Haydee is also a huge fan of the written world. Every time she's in Manila, she makes it a point to visit a bookstore and she would rarely, rarely leave the bookstore without any purchase.

Last night, she took home Anita Shreve and Maya Angelou. I wasn't really planning on getting any but I decided to browse while waiting for Haydee to finish her book shopping. That's when I saw the two books above. I didn't have any money with me so I'm really happy that Haydee agreed to spot for me.

I'm excited to read both.

I already started with Angie's travel notes. It's an interesting read because the book content was taken from her journals written during her UNHCR trips to Cambodia, Africa, Pakistan and Ecuador. I've always, always loved Angelina Jolie because of her humanitarian work. To some it may appear false. But I believe in her work. Because if she weren't doing it sincerely, she wouldn't do it over and over again. Add to that the fact that some of the places she visits put her at risk - Afghanistan, for example.

The other title, Bringing Home the Birkin, was written by Michael Tonello and is also an interesting read because he recounts his search for the elusive Birkin. "It's not a bag. It's a Birkin." goes one line from an episode of Sex and the City. I've seen another book cover of the title ages ago but I didn't buy it because it was pretty expensive. When I finally had the money and went back for the book, it was no longer there. So now that I stumbled upon the title again (though different cover), I already went ahead and got it. Yey!

I saw some other titles that I want to get but they're really, really bloody expensive. Augh! I want to get In Praise of Women: Anita Magsaysay-Ho, but it's P4,000! I have to save up for it. Huhuhu! It sucks that some of the book titles I want are so expensive. I want a Tom Ford title that came out years ago but the book cost as much as a round trip airfare to Singapore. Ugh!

It also sucks that there is no LGBT section anymore in Powerbooks or NBS. I remember I was really happy when NBS started having a LGBT lit section. It was good that I got to buy several titles for my collection. I kind of expected that the section would eventually be removed. I just dunno if the decision was influenced by anti-gay groups. Hay!

Anyway, reading is something I want to (I have to) do again. I should squeeze in a chapter or two in my daily schedule. I envy people who can read so many titles in a week. Good for them. I wish I could do the same. But I don't think I can give up spinning and Reagan just so I can have Michael Thomas Ford or David Stukas on a Tuesday night. Hehe!

What was the last book you read?

Started on Changing Tides...

Started reading again. Finally took the new Michael Thomas Ford novel - Changing Tides - out of its plastic wrapping and turned to page one. Of course, before that, I just had to feel the crisp pages of the book and I just had to intoxicate myself with the scent of a newly opened book. Hahaha! Is that weird?

Michael Thomas Ford is one of my favorite authors of all time. I have all his novels and I love, love, love them all. Among his essay collections, the only one I got to read was Alec Baldwin Doesn't Love Me. Completely hilarious. Haha! And I've got "an old friend" to thank for introducing me to Michael Thomas Ford.

So thank you, XLM, for lending me ABDLM. One of the many things I really loved about you and me is the love for good books.

Aside from Michael Thomas Ford, I think there are 10 more other books waiting to be read. Eeeep! Including Armistead Maupin, Mariane Pearl, among others. I really should get back on track with my reading.

Lastly, one of the books I've been wanting to get my hands on is Alek written by Sudanese supermodel Alek Wek. Unfortunately, it's out of stock in the bookstores where I usually buy my books. Sigh. If you know where I can get a copy, please let me know.