Turning the Lights Back On

I love films. There's a challenge in trying to tell a good story in 90 to 120 minutes, rather than stretching it out across dozens of hours of television or hundreds of printed pages. There’s an art and a craft to it, and not everyone can pull it off.

I've seen thousands of films at this point in my life, and I spent four years at U.C. Berkeley's Film Studies program. My plan was that I would make a living writing about movies, however, by the time I got out of college in the early 2000s, the internet had made anyone with a computer and an opinion a film critic. I tried to add my own voice in the old-fashioned way, but after four years working a dead-end job at a film magazine, I did the worst thing anyone can do. I gave up.

I’ve realized lately, though, how much I’ve missed writing about movies, sharing my passion and knowledge, and I've decided to start up again.

Perhaps being a new parent has encouraged me. It’s definitely changed my perspective on life, yes, but it’s also taught me something very important—I don’t have time for bad movies anymore. I maybe get to see one feature film a week at home, and perhaps one in the theater every season. So, I have to pick my battles wisely.

Writing film reviews is a way to shake the cobwebs off an old skill set, and help that poor, neglected left brain of mine (there are only so many times it can read the The Very Hungry Caterpillar before giving up hope of stimulation). By sharing my reviews, I can help other moviegoers, because nothing sucks more than wasting your night on a crappy movie.

In all honesty, these reviews will be like my own movie watching: sporadic, not very timely, but hopefully enjoyable. I can’t promise a regular schedule until my son can promise me the same. He's 19 months old now. It’s gonna be a long wait.

My first review will be coming Thursday, where I review the indie foodie flick Chef. I hope you'll join me for it. 

Figs and Goat Cheese

My lunch today: smooth and tangy goat cheese spread over a thick slice of hearty walnut bread, topped with syrupy-sweet ripe figs.

I love you, summer.

I honestly don't know when my obsession with figs began. As a kid, I definitely enjoyed Fig Newtons--with their cakey outsides and thick, chewy centers--but I never really had the chance to try the real deal until I was much older. Really, I'm trying, but I can't pinpoint the moment where I went, "holy bejebus, I need me more of those figs!" Like I did a few weeks ago.

It all began when co-worker/friend of the Professor's was throwing a little birthday bash. For the first time ever, we were "those people" with the toddler at the grown-up party.

I spent a good portion of the festivities alone on the back patio in an attempt to keep Bubby away from the lovely snacks carefully arranged right at his eye level. While dashing about after a whiffle ball, I surreptitiously watched the other adults relaxing inside, sipping their microbrews and chatting about science, politics, and travel. My stimulating conversation? "Look, Bubby! Catch the ball! Catch the ball! No! Don't throw it over the fence!"

I was about to throw in the towel when another of my husband's colleagues arrived with his wife, bearing a colander full of beautiful, ripe figs. Apparently, they had a tree just bursting with the little beauties, and they sliced up a dozen figs to share with the party.

One bite of the glistening fruit--served atop a cloud of blueberry-kissed goat cheese on a slice of soft, sweet French bread--and my afternoon was saved. It got even better when I was encouraged to take home a party cup full of figs. They were gone by the next morning.

Those figs haunted me for weeks. It wasn't a constant obsession, but more of a niggling craving in the back of my head. "You know what sounds good right now? Figs and goat cheese." I'm a realist, though, and I knew that a $6.99 basket of figs at the local produce market wouldn't be nearly as good as the tree-ripened fruit that had seduced me so. Or as cheap.

Then, yesterday, my patience was rewarded. The Professor came home from work with a little green basket of figs in hand, compliments of his colleague and his wife. Craving became full-on obsession: "Damn it! Now I need goat cheese!"

It was all I could think about this morning: "Make the Bubby's breakfast. Figs and goat cheese. Pack the Professor's sandwich. Figs and goat cheese. Hey, my friend just had a baby! Figs and goat cheese."

Obviously--from the photos above--this story has a happy ending. A quick pop into Lundari's market provided me the much-coveted goat cheese, and I even splurged to get the thick, dark whole wheat and walnut bread that I knew would be the perfect base. I was right.

My lunch was everything I'd been craving: simple, sweet, hearty, and creamy all at once. A little burst of summer on my tongue.

And you know what's even better? I still have six figs. I think I know what I'm having for dinner tonight.

Outdoor Adventures on the Peninsula

February came and went in a blur. I know in many parts of the U.S., that blur was one of snow and ice. Not so here in (surprisingly) sunny Northern California.

What, you don't have a water temple in your neighborhood?

Since the Professor had Valentine's Day off work (hooray!) we spent the afternoon exploring the landscape of our new Peninsula neighborhood. We live within easy driving distance of some truly beautiful country, so we figured we'd expose the young 'un to a little nature.

First stop was the Pulgas Water Temple. No, fellow Legend of Zelda fans, there weren't any dungeons or puzzles or fairies. Just a nice dome and a reflecting pool.

Unfortunately, little Bubby fell asleep in his car seat right as we arrived, so I did a solo scouting mission to see what was ahead. It's not like we could wait. For some reason, the parking lot is only open Monday through Friday, and only until 4 p.m. sharp, as the sign in the lot says. Oh, and you could only park for 30 minutes. You'd think the city doesn't want anyone to see this!

So, off we went to our second destination, the Crystal Springs Reservoir.

I love this place. Well, what I've seen of it so far. I'd previously taken Bubby on a stroller walk on the Sawyer Camp Trail in Belmont...and it had ended in tears. For both of us. I figured we'd have a better shot at a good time with Daddy along.

Yeah, not so much.

We did manage to enjoy some of the sights after Bubby had an al fresco lunch, though we really didn't get much further down the trail. I think his hands were cold, poor guy, and I'd forgotten his mittens ('cause it was like, 60 degrees).

I highly recommend this trail for anyone looking for a pleasant walk. It's a wide, paved path with plenty of restrooms and benches lining it. It draws folks of all types, from solo bicyclists to clans of families with strollers and tricycles. I hope we can finally get Bubby to enjoy this place!

We've only begun to scratch the surface of what we can find here on the Peninsula. It's been quite a change for us, after living 15 years in the highly urban Berkeley/Oakland area. Though, every time I start to miss it (which is often), I remember that this...

...is just a five-minute drive away, and I instantly feel better.

The First Halloween: Timmy the Lamb and Mama Sheep

For years before I became a mom, I'd dream about having a child to share Halloween with. It's my favorite holiday (if you couldn't tell by my past crafting and spooky baby shower), and I'd started to hit that age where raging parties were hard on the body and the schedule. At that point, Halloween becomes a stay-at-home holiday, and I became relegated to the giving end of the trick 'r' treat ritual. Nothing wrong with that...unless the only one that comes to your door is your downstairs neighbor looking to bum a smoke.

So, when I had Vinnie, I began planning his costume waaaay in advance. Maybe too far in advance. Like, when he was a few weeks old. In January.

OK, to be fair, I was hit with a bolt of inspiration thanks to my Netflix queue. I watched quite a lot of TV in the early days of Vinnie's life, and the one show that never failed to cheer me up on the most difficult, sleep-deprived days was Shaun the Sheep. If you're not familiar with Shaun, it's a British claymation show featuring a cast of  mischievous barnyard animals. The lack of dialogue lends a universal quality to the show, making it enjoyable by all ages.

There were two characters in particular that struck a chord with me: the little lamb, Timmy, and his roller-sporting mother:

They were too flippin' cute, and spoke to the core of my new mama-hood. I knew what I wanted us to be for Vinnie's first Halloween.

Easier said than done. Timmy is a very specific lamb, and no generic sheep costume would do. This would involve garment sewing and possibly pattern making, two things I have little to no experience in. So, I called in the big guns: my mother, who is an extremely talented quilter and seamstress. She'd made plenty of Halloween costumes for me and my brother growing up. A couple of sheep costumes would be a piece of cake, no?

Since she lives across the state, we perused patterns online and I'd call her from fabric shops for her input. We decided on a McCall's toddler pattern for the body (which she'd scale up for mine), with leggings and long sleeve shirts underneath. We debated about the hats for a bit, until my mother commissioned a crafty friend to crochet a pair of black beanies. During a week-long visit to her house, we (and by "we" I mean "she") whipped up the two soft, fluffy sheep shells.

Costume fitting!

My job was the hats, and I had to create the ears and face from scratch. It was trickier than I initially imagined. The ears had to stick out, but I couldn't use wires or anything that could hurt the baby's soft little head. I ended up using fleece stiffened with interfacing, then adding a layer of batting. I also did some top stitching to make the ears stiff. I then split them in half a few inches, inserted the ends in the holes left by the crochet, and stitched them closed inside.

I then cut out the eyes on black and white felt, and the nostrils using black felt, and appliqued them to the hats. The Mama Sheep had her rollers to deal with, too, which I attached by winding strips of leftover fluffy fabric around the rollers then poking them through the crochet holes to tie inside, much like the ears.

It's the little details that kept me the most busy. Every time I thought I had it done, there was one more elements to the costumes that needed attention (such as finding the perfect yellow pacifier for the Timmy costume). Finally, after numerous visits to the fabric store, a cross-state trip, things being mailed last-minute, and sewing against the clock, the costumes were done.

Ta da! It's Timmy! All that hard work and...wait...

...wait...

...well, crap.

We got him to wear the hat for maybe a total of two minutes. Maybe.

It was hard not to be disappointed, but as my husband pointed out, there's a good chance we'll be able to use these costumes again next year. Even if Vinnie doesn't appreciate it now, someday, when he's older, he'll look back at the pictures of his first Halloween and see just how much his mama (and grandmama) love him...

...or how crazy we were.

The Best Reason for Not Blogging

My baby boy Vincent. Born December 13, 2012 in Oakland, CA. He's now over a month old.

Not much time for blogging--or crafting, or writing, or anything else--when you're trying to get the hang of an entirely new way of life: diaper changes, round-the-clock feedings, obliterated sleep schedules. 

I admit it, this has been the hardest month of my life. I wouldn't have made it if it weren't for an incredible network of family and friends that rallied around my husband and I to offer tons of love, support, and hot meals. I now understand that saying, "it takes a village to raise a child." It's really, really true.

It's all been so very worth it, though. I love my little man like I've never loved anyone before. It's amazing to watch him develop slowly from an eat-sleep-poop machine to a human being. Sure, it's only been a month, but in that time he's come so very far. All of us have. I've gone from feeling like a terrified newbie into feeling like, well, a Mom. 

Here's to the first month, and to many, many more, my boy.

My Halloween Baby Shower

Happy Halloween everyone! I thought I'd celebrate my favorite holiday by sharing some of the crafty and culinary creations that went into the Halloween baby shower I had earlier this month.

It was a joint planning effort between my mama, my mom-in-law, and myself, and together (with the help of my husband, dad, and sister-in-law) we turned my little 2-bedroom apartment into a full-on Halloween party central.

I'm super-proud of this banner. I could not find anywhere that sold Halloween-themed baby shower signs, either online or in the stores. So, using cardstock, mini-clothespins, and fun orange/black baker's twine, I made my own banner!

 My mom took the idea one step further. She taped more colorful cardstock onesies in the entryway, and encouraged guests to leave their well wishes for the baby. They were cute decorations, and now are precious mementos. Definitely more fun than a sign-in book!

Decorating was such a team effort! My mom- and sister-in-law were climbing like monkeys to get the crepe streamers and balloons up, while my mama spent the evening before making these pumpkin-esque puffs out of tissue paper. 

My contribution to the decor: these adorable Halloween sock monkeys I scored at a card and gift store. I only bought two, then after walking a block away, turned back to buy the third and last one. I also found the cute skeleton-bear at JoAnn's (I think I see a theme-within-a-theme here...).

For favors, we gave out cute tins stuffed with Halloween socks, a notepad, no-sharpen pencil, and candy. I also made little tags for them out of cardstock and "thank you" stickers I ordered to match my invitations. For the kids, we had little plastic cups stuffed with candy. We would have had more for them, but we didn't know they were coming until the day before!

 We had so much food! This is only a fraction of it. In addition to the veggies, fruit, wrap sandwiches, and cheeseball, we had butternut squash soup, spanakopita, baked potato bites, and lots of cookies.

Also, note the stack of plates in the right corner. My mama found these vintage milk glass party plates at an estate sale. I admit, when I first saw them, I was really skeptical. However, once they were in play, I can't imagine the party without them! They came with little matching cups that were perfect for the soup, and were much sturdier (and attractive) that paper plates. I'll definitely be using them again.

The centerpiece of the table: the cake! It was a pumpkin cake with cream cheese frosting, from this awesome bakery in Berkeley called Love at First Bite. It was SUPER-rich, and one 9" cake was more than enough for 14+ guests. 

As for the message, we've been calling the little guy "The Tadpole." We're pretty much set on his name at this point, but I'm a wee bit superstitious and don't want to use it until he's actually born. Who knows? Maybe we'll look at him and decide that name choice #2 is actually more appropriate!

My mom-in-law makes some of the absolute best gingerbread cookies, and was generous enough to bake a couple of trays for the festivities. Mama and I contributed some nutter-butter ghosties, which are super-easy to make. You just dunk the cookies in melted white chocolate and add two mini chocolate chips for eyes. That's it!

After all that work, it was great to see everyone having a good time and enjoying the food and decorations. Here they are playing a game my mom-in-law coordinated, to see who could match and roll 12 pairs of baby socks the quickest. It was tougher than it sounds! As a bonus, I got to keep all the socks. 

The hostesses before the party began: my mama, myself, and my mom-in-law. Since they live so far from each other, it's rare that I get to hang out with them both at the same time, so it was wonderful having them both there. I couldn't have done this all this without them. 

As for the shirt, I saw one on Etsy that I fell in love with, but couldn't justify the price tag. As a total surprise, mom and sister-in-law gave me one the day of the shower. It was perfect!

And yes, I'm totally wearing that shirt again today. Have fun and be safe tonight, everyone!

Happiness is...

...getting your contributor's copies...

...and seeing your story in print. 

Shakespeare Shaken is now available in print as well as a series of digital downloads (including a solo of S.H.R.E.W.) from Red Stylo Media. Having seen it in person, I highly recommend splurging on the print version. The artwork pops so much more on paper than on a screen.

Really, though I don't care how you choose to read it, as long as you give it a peek!

S.H.R.E.W. now available from Red Stylo Media

The day has finally arrived! My short comic story, S.H.R.E.W., for the Shakespeare Shaken anthology, is now available for  download!

Download Here for only $1.99

From the Red Stylo Media site:

Kat is a perfect specimen of female spitfire and grace, and her corporate handlers in the Super-human Research, Education and Weaponization project can see her potential. But it's Kat's strength that also keeps her from submitting to her S.H.R.E.W. training, and so the programmers resort to bringing in the mysterious and sinister Doctor Petru to help Kat stay the course...

Shakespeare Shaken meets the perfect (bionic) woman in S.H.R.E.W., written by Sherezada Kent (author of ELDORADO from Poe Twisted), with art by Jarrod Perez; color and letters by Mark Mullaney ("Star-Crossed", "Zombie Cruise", and "The System of Doctor Canne and Professor Bulle".) 

This download includes a special note from the author, as well as a BONUS pin-up from artist Laura Guzzo!

Many other tales from Shakespeare Shaken are also now available, so be sure to check them out!

New Project: Shakespeare Shaken

All the world's a stage, 
and all the men and women merely players...

In my case, all the world's a comic book, and the men and women artists and writers!

I'm excited to announce that my second short comic story, "S.H.R.E.W." will be included in Red Stylo Media's upcoming Shakespeare Shaken anthology!

"S.H.R.E.W." is a dark science fiction take on The Taming of the Shrew, filled with sinister science experiments, corporate warfare, and dangerous women. With art by Jarrod Perez.

Digital release of the "S.H.R.E.W." single issue is slated for September 12. Be sure to check out the full line-up of other Shakespeare Shaken titles, there's some great stuff in there from some really talented folks (including many Poe Twisted alumni)! All titles will be release together in a beautiful print anthology as well.

The New Neighborhood

One of the challenges of my new apartment is my reliance on the car to get me around. This has taken some getting used to. I'd spent the last 8 years being within walking distance to shopping and the BART line, which allowed me a great deal of linear independence. Now, I have a more radial sense of mobility, but it's limited to when I have access to the vehicle. This means, when the Professor has the car for work, I'm essentially marooned here.

I admit, I was starting to get a little stir crazy. Twice a week may not seem like much, but when you're all alone in an apartment ALL DAY (the Prof works late) without so much as a pet, it can get a little isolating. Today, I couldn't take the prospect of spending another gorgeous, sunny day trapped in my apartment alone. So, rather than doing my usual Qi Gong exercise video in my living room, I strapped on my kicks, packed a snack, and headed out my door...

...and look what I found!

I'd seen on maps that we're close to the border of Wildcat Canyon Regional Park, and I'd seen some cryptic signs nearby stating "Park Closed" hours, but I'd never found the access to the park. Today, I stumbled upon it during my adventure walk. 

I enjoyed my snack while perched on a boulder, listening to the burble of the creek and the rustle of the wind through the eucalyptus leaves. Now, I've never been much of an outdoor person, but the fresh air and sunshine was seriously like a antidote to the craziness, and I felt my mind still. It was lovely.

After my snack, my explorations took me up into Alvardo Park proper, which is a neat place with stone walls, picnic areas, and wide, sunny fields. I foresee some serious toes-in-the-grass time once the weather gets even warmer.

The best part was, I had most of the area to myself. There were a few young mothers with their children, and a man with his little dog, but on the whole I could explore in peace. Odd to say, since it was solitude that drove me out of the apartment, but it's different when you're out in nature. I didn't feel alone...I felt connected to the web of life in a way that I hadn't in a long time.

Now that I know it's there, I think afternoon walks in the park are going to become part of my regular routine. Having this nearby sure beats a shopping center any day of the week!

Bangkok: Sampeng Market (This ain't JoAnn's)

With all the flooding going on in Thailand right now, Bangkok has been on my mind a lot lately. I felt the urge to go back and share some of the happy times I had there this summer. It's resilient city, and I know, with time, it will recover. My heart goes out to the good people in this trying time.

When I was in Bangkok this summer, one of my favorite days was the crafty "girl's day out" my Thai hostess invited me to. We left the husbands and her kids snoring away, and were on the road by 8 a.m. to discover the crafty treasures awaiting us in the labyrinthine corridors of the Sampeng Market.

Located in Chinatown, this market tends to be a bit off the tourist trail. Though, if you have a crafting bone in your body, Sampeng is a must-see. It's jam-packed with fabrics, notions, yarns, and beads, as well as hair decorations, school supplies, toys, clothing, housewares, and "exotic" snacks (oh, how I miss you, salted snow plums).  Even better, it's all relatively inexpensive, though it really helped that I was with a local who could help me haggle.

Our first crafty stop was at one of the biggest bead stores in the market. I was drawn in by the walls lined with bags of colorful sequins, and followed the glittery trail back to find a cavernous room lined with sacks of rhinestones and beads. It took me a bit to explain to the nice employees that I wanted smaller quantities of beads, not smaller sizes of beads themselves, but once I did I walked out with some gorgeous rhinestones and hand-made polymer clay flowers.

 After a bit more shopping for hair accessories and gifts (as well as a new pair of embroidery scissors to replace the ones confiscated in Taipei), we stopped for lunch. We simply stepped out of the flow of traffic to a noodle vendor, and perched ourselves at the wee stall-side table while they cooked up our meal on the spot.

I have to admit, I felt a bit like an adult sitting at a child's table, though by then I was getting used to being the biggest person around. You can see just how little the stools were from the background of this picture. Comfy for Thais, not so much for plus-size Farang women.

After a tasty lunch, we browsed some more. I was in high shopping mode. I picked up a Japanese quilting magazine for my mom, tons of beautifully patterned cotton fabric, numerous spools of thread, and some fine crochet yarn for my friend back home. It was a beautiful, crafty haul.

I haven't begun projects with most of the materials yet, but I'm waiting for the right ideas to strike. These are once-in-a-lifetime treasures for me, so when I finally do make something, I want it to be the right something.

Sights of Thailand: Nutshell Edition

"And this is Selma dropping off our vacation film to be developed.
Thus concludes our Mexican Odyssey."

So, to keep this from turning into an, endless, Patty-and-Selma like slideshow of vacation photos, I've done the seemingly impossible and picked a handful of my favorite sightseeing pictures from the trip. These are what summed up our time in Thailand, and they may not always be what you expect.

Sawasdee Ka Krung Thep (Hello, Bangkok)

Krung Thep means City of Angels, but we are happy to call it Bangkok if it helps to separate a farang from his money. –John Burdett, Bangkok 8

When we arrived in Bangkok, it was after 14+ hours in the air. So, everything had a sort of dreamlike quality for the first day or so as our bodies adjusted their biorhythms from Pacific Standard to Indochina Time.

I’ll always remember when we entered Bangkok proper for the first time. As our taxi swept down from the expressway into midday Bangkok traffic, a strange sense of familiarity flooded me. It wasn’t just the billboards for Western movies and products, or even the landscape of high rises jutting into the milky sky.

It was the near-claustrophobic crush of humanity right at street level: brightly painted taxis, spindly tuk tuks, and hordes of weaving motor-scooters. Vendors would casually navigate between the packed lanes, selling snacks and flower garlands. The BTS Skytrain glided above all the commotion like a sleek, pale eel as we neared Sukhumvit Road (essentially Main Street, Bangkok), marking our destination.

It took me a minute to pinpoint where the nostalgia was coming from. Then it hit me: the urban soup of Bangkok was not too unlike that of the Third World metropolis of my childhood, Mexico DF. Half a globe away from my continent, and suddenly I knew I was going to be alright. I could navigate this, even with a huge language barrier.

Our basecamp was a condo right in downtown, which was being rented for the summer by a good friend of ours and his wonderful family. They graciously put us up for the two weeks of our stay, and were the best guides we could have hoped for as we not only navigated the ins-and-outs of the City of Angels, but the way of living in Southeast Asia.

Next up in the series: The sights of Thailand.