Batman in Coach

So I was munching on my quarter pounder and fries, anticipating another delayed flight out of JFK, when I chanced upon a couple approaching the AA counter. The guy looked strangely familiar... I thought, "No, it can't be him, he's too short and kinda skinny. Has production wrapped up and he's lost all his bulk already?" But the lady he was with had a quality about her. Like the types that could be seen in US magazine's "Stars, They're Just Like Us." I pretend I'm not staring by looking at his reflection on the glass windows instead. Oh, but I really think it's him! So I call my very reliable friend J, and give him an assignment:

"Does he have a wife?" I asked

"Yes...," he replied. "Well, what does she look like?"

"Jessica Biel," was his very efficient reply. Then I start shivering like the Noreaster winds were blowing at the back of my neck. "OH MY GOD! Then it is Christian Bale!"

And I just watched Batman Begins for the nth time last week. I couldn't believe he was standing just about four feet from me and I could not rack my brains for the best way to approach him. And so, I opted to act like any self-respecting New Yorker who doesn't want to admit that she was starstruck would, like I didn't recognize Christian Freakin' Bale. He was just like any other stranded passenger at JFK... except that he has played in the best Batman movie ever! I realized I definitely have stalking tendencies. The entire time we were waiting, I was tracking where he was and what better way to find a superstar but at the arcade games. His game of choice? Why, PacMan, of course!

We start boarding and I thought, "Well that's the last time I'm seeing the guy." And much to my pleasant surprise, he boards with everybody else in coach! Coach, for goodness' sake! I guess he was a chance passenger... or he's just really, really stingy. Well, if his worn out sneakers say anything. I just love the guy more now. He didn't seem to have any airs about him. None at all. In fact, he reminded me more of his Jim from Empire of the Sun instead of Bruce Wayne.

I'm still haunted by the fact that I had two cameras with me and did not have the guts to approach my favorite Batman. I just want to punch myself. I guess there are more chances for star sightings on an LA flight from NY. I think I'll be taking that flight again when I fly off to California. Christian Bale made the four hour delay worth it.

Thanks!

This has been a wonderful year of gifts! Alright, so it's a bit materialistic, but I do want to thank my friends for the great gifts I got this year... They took both implied and blunt wishlists seriously and I have to say, I'm very grateful!

This is why each of these gifts is so cool... Roomie gave me my ultimate kilig DVD from the final season of the Vicar of Dibley when the vicar gets married to yummylicious Harry played by Richard Armitage, of course. This was an absolutely pleasant surprise! Apart from this, roomie included, with the already great gift, a Shu Uemura eyelash curler. I've been scoping for one, but haven't been able to bring myself to get one primarily because I have virtually no lashes and so I didn't think it would be worth the purchase. So thanks to roomie who thought my lashes could potentially be curled after all.

Next, my secret Santa J, as it turns out, gave me some new additions to my flimsy library. Got me books from Milton Friedman, and two new authors I wanted to read: Jorge Amado and Lisa See. Can't wait to plop down and read them!

Then, there's Franny and Noel's gift--another interesting and fun book on Egyptology. This is sort of a more mature pop-up book as you can see below.

And of course, these pictures are made possible by the absolutely perfect gift I got for my birthday:

Thank you!!!

Quotable quotes 1

Eating is a serious business--Lorah Madete, Ph.D. student, Fordham Economics

Why did the chicken cross the road? Because it maximizes its utility.--Charles Wheelan, Naked Economics

Accomplished: A Rather Belated Response

Forgive the tone of the title of this blog entry. It just reflects the anglophilia that my roommate and I have been recently afflicted with. Well, maybe we’re not exactly obsessed with everything English or about England, but maybe with everything BBC! This entry is in response to roomie's blog post, “Accomplished” (http://kristinesync.multiply.com/journal/item/50/Accomplished).

Yes, perhaps, we would fall short of their standards of an accomplished woman, but Austen lived in a time where the accomplishment of women is measured by very, very limited norms. The arts figured prominently in their standards because women could not be expected to be good at anything else since they are ultimately to be married off anyway. I shudder to think of a time when my lack of talent in music and the arts and of the “air” of an “accomplished” woman or the impropriety of my gait and my manner of speaking would have kept me from a life of comfort and a “marriage with affection”.

We moved 8,000 or so miles away from home to become doctors of philosophy in a field that many recoil from. We are, so far, unscathed by this harsh realm that we call the Bronx. Although I have yet to fully understand it, roomie is writing a kick-ass dissertation that I’m sure no accomplished woman of Austen’s time would have even imagined understanding. At our age, we are not having panic attacks at not having any good marriage prospects because we know we can hold our own good fortune… signed in our own names. As for that certain air? We can put one on… take your pick. Yes, there may be much to be desired with our current status, but I would still consider us rather… accomplished.

Happy birthday, roomie!

Headstand for a Hangover

After one year of prodding and promoting, roomie finally got me to go to yoga class. I started to doubt if I'd go considering the amount of alcohol I consumed the night before. But I went anyway since I would never hear the end of it from Elitza who, along with roomie, would not let up on insisting that I go to the classes.

It was a very interesting and quite fulfilling experience, actually. I went there thinking that I'd probably take it easy and not try and do everything that these more advanced students are already doing. Oh, but no, when they started doing the headstands and I was quietly watching in awe at the gymnastics these people are doing, Elitza comes and says the dreaded "Come on, Leanne." Seriously? Make me do a headstand on the first time I ever go to yoga class? So, having Elitza who is Hitler personified in a prettier package at my back, I try it anyway. And I'm glad I did. There's nothing better than to do a headstand with a hangover. When I woke up, half my head hurt... now, I hurt. Talk about treating pain with pain. I'll definitely be back, though.

People Are Such Idiots

So here I am at home, quietly surfing the internet, not bothering anyone when I am rudely interrupted by a strange noise that sounded like someone threw a snow ball at my window. And why am I not surprised that the strange noise WAS someone throwing a snow ball at my bedroom window? Because people are such idiots!!! ... Oh, and this happened twice. By the way, I'm on the second floor, someone put in effort to throw that snow ball. Idiot.

My Book Shelf on Shelfari

I don't necessarily like all these books... especially Coelho (too "the-universe-is-working-with-you") and Kundera (Hitler would have been a great man if he didn't have to go poop... Whada???). Special note here, I loved the Soledad Lacson-Locsin English translations of Noli and El Fili.

Morimoto, NYC

I still find it amusing that I only get to visit certain places in NYC when I have guests from out of town. Never got to see the Empire State Bldg., for instance, until my friends Soph and Clem came here for a holiday. Last month, my uncle and his wonderful family flew in from Canada. And thank goodness they're big Food Network fans. They made it a point to make reservations at Morimoto of Iron Chef fame. I would never have gotten to eat there with my student budget, if not for them.

Because they wanted the whole Morimoto experience, we all went for the Chef's 120-dollar tasting menu. The menu consists of eight courses personally designed by Morimoto himself (or so they say). Of course, those eight courses include the green tea and tiny macaroon to clean the palate in the middle of the meal. My aunt and I weren't very impressed with the first few courses--tuna paste with five or so dipping sauces, oyster with foie gras and uni, among those that I could remember. They were pretty, indeed, but nothing really blew our minds.That is, until the surf and turf came.

It was half a lobster seasoned with curry that came with lemon creme fraiche to subdue the strength of the seasoning and kobe beef marinated in teriyaki sauce on a bed of cut Japanese sweet potatoes (AKA, kamote!). That was the kicker. The lobster was fresh and didn't really need too much spicing up at all. The beef was unbelievably tender and sweet.

All in all, it was a wonderful experience, especially since I didn't pay for it! The restaurant, with its clean lines and immaculate appearance, was quite a sight to behold. Even the restrooms were interesting, with their hi-tech flushing, pulsating, warming up the toilet seat system. The wait staff was friendly and accommodating. I mean, it is to be expected given the price you have to pay in that restaurant, but it's still refreshing that their staff did not have any airs that some high brow places would have.

What's Your Favorite Richard Armitage Proposal Scene?

I have seen a total of three bodies of work involving the hunkalicious British actor, Richard Armitage. Roomie introduced me to the ultimate pining movie, North and South, the BBC miniseries that launched Richard Armitage as a new, and possibly, better Mr. Darcy. As John Thornton, a cotton mill owner from the North, he is shunned by his object of affection, Margaret who hails from the South and is appalled by the ways of the North (initially, at least). The marriage proposal, let's just say, didn't go very well.

In Robinhood, he plays the contemptible (although I wouldn't say he's successful at making me hate him) Sir Guy of Gisborne who seeks pretty much everything that Robin has... land, a real title, and naturally, the girl. The proposal scene here finds Marian being forced by Sir Guy to say yes under the threat that if she doesn't, he would not be able to protect her and her father from the evil Sheriff of Nottingham. Although he was able to get the desired result, this is hardly the most romantic proposal anybody's ever seen.

The best proposal scene, in my opinion, is the one from the Vicar of Dibley. He plays Harry (Jasper) Kennedy, an accountant who moves into Dibley and falls in love with the vicar, played brilliantly funny by Dawn French. The pairing seems odd, the much younger and hunky Harry with the chunky vicar. But they play it so wonderfully that you can't help but fall in love with and root for them. Richard is convincing as a lovelorn Harry, and Dawn gives the most wonderful reaction to the proposal. Roomie posted these scenes (also available on YouTube) from the series finale... All you romantics must watch. Although I've watched the scene countless times, I still get kilig with the courtship and the proposal.