WRITING CULTURE 2012: Film, Food & Beyond

New York has never been one to dwell on the past. We move forward.

Photo Credit: NY POST

Sandy brought many to low points that they weren’t even aware they could reach. Those people are clawing themselves from the pit, fighting for a better tomorrow.

I don’t know what it is to go without power for ten or more days, but my brother does. My brother and his family lived without power for close to two weeks and he told me that the worse part was the feeling of impotence Sandy brought with her. I just can’t fathom what it is to go from having everything one second to having no power, or no home.

Power is back to almost everyone in New York City. They now have some place warm to sleep. Things are looking up, for some.

Some had more problems than just losing lights, they lost homes. Those people are living out of shelters, relatives homes, or places the NYC government has fashioned for them. Their lives are going to take a while to go back to how they were. All of those that are still displaced are still asking for help and asking not to be forgotten because they need the help, they need us.

I was fortunate enough to not be harmed by Sandy’s wrath and that made me more eager to help. My neighborhood church hosted a donation table to send out necessities for those in parts of Staten Island and Coney Island that needed it the most.

I made sure to contribute with everything I possibly could.

Sandy brought with it a lot of destruction, but it also united communities in astounding ways. People in the city reached out to their neighbors in Staten Island. They organized caravans to take supplies to those who needed it the most.

The physical destruction Sandy caused might take weeks, months, or even years to fix. New Yorkers’ spirits though, that is being rebuilt by the second.

I didn’t really know what I was getting myself into by going to Emperor Japanese Tapas Shabu Restaurant, so before I took the plunge I did what any person who prides herself in being a millennial would do…I googled. I was pleased with what I found.  

I was comforted by the fact that the Japanese restaurant had a website because it made one thing painstakingly clear, this was not like the small Asian take out restaurant in my neighborhood. I was relieved. As good as my delivered Chinese food always tastes, I don’t look forward to having a sit-down meal there.

Shabu restaurant on 96 Bowery is a sight for the eyes, in addition to my taste buds . Once you walk in you’re completely mesmerized by the decor. The restaurant is bright and well lighted, accentuating the open space and making it all the more homey.   Plus, just going through the images on the site made me hungry; definitely a good sign. 

Nonetheless, full disclosure in mentioning I am a finicky eater when it comes to certain kinds of food. Attribute this to the fact that my family is Ecuadorian and ceviche is a traditional dish. Ceviche is awesome, once I got over how it was cooked.

Shabu Restaurant has a lot in common with ceviche. One is the family, sharing atmosphere it promotes. Cooking at the table over a hot pot invites sharing, laughs, and a whole lot of different tastes being combined. Shabu Restaurant emphasizes the ability to cook the food yourself over a hot pot, it’s part of their charm. In my family making ceviche was always intergenerational, one appreciated over time, because at first cooking raw fish in lemon is really not appealing.

Yet, the taste of pieces of fish, lemon juice, and all kinds of seasoning is enthralling. The same way the beef in the Chinese cilantro broth is unusual but in the best way. I liked the taste of the broth because it was rich and way more of an explosion on my taste buds than I expected it would be. Just through the smell of the food you can almost instantly taste the strong cilantro taste in the broth. As good as the broth was, adding pork maybe wasn’t the best option for me. I didn’t like the pork itself, it was too chewy, and its texture just did not complement the broth like I thought it would.

Menu. Photo Credit: Juliya.

Overall, I loved the experience of having the Shabu Shabu All You Can Eat Menu because it took me back to Sunday lunches with my family. The ambience of the restaurant was bright and inviting, you wanted to sit and eat there. The same way I always couldn’t wait to sit and eat with my family.  I loved it.  Ceviche was usually our central dish, like the broth was here.

My favorite part is that one dish can bring a family together over one common denominator, while also encouraging making the meal your own.

I voted today for the first time ever.

I was so  excited to finally get a chance to vote, to be able to voice my opinions, and vote on where I wanted to see this country move. I acknowledge everything millions of Americans went through to allow me the right to vote. I am a woman and a minority and in 2012 I voted for POTUS in 30 minutes.

If that isn’t magical, I don’t know what is.

I am a political buff, so today was a close second to Christmas for me. I’ve been following CNN’s coverage online and on TV since I got home at 6pm. They did a beyond AMAZING job! I loved that they had their constant reports on the new states that were called, I also loved that I could follow online.

CNN Website once Obama Win Called

For the wit and fun that a presidential election brings I followed Twitter. Most journalists that were watching along with CNN or MSNBC were also tweeting, which gave an insightful look to the election. I also absolutely loved that ABC incorporated Jorge Ramos to their election coverage. Jorge Ramos is a Univision reporter, he is usually connected solely with Spanish speaking newsrooms, but he actually brings so much insight to the table. I saw him a few weeks back on This Week and seeing him tonight speaking of the Hispanic vote made me glad that I am a Hispanic who voted and  made my voice heard.

I think the most important tweet of the night was projected second term President, Barack Obama. Personally, I loved that he took to social media to thank all those that contributed to his campaign.

President Obama Twitter

New York Magazine Cover Shot.

Hurricane Sandy was probably one of the scariest things I have lived through. Ever.

The way your body shakes or shutters every time Sandy’s winds hit the window out of pure fear and consciousness that a million things could go terribly wrong. The lights flickering so quickly, and regularly, that it’s almost like you’re blinking, but you know it’s not you it’s everything that is happening outside.

The sense of fear comes from not being to do anything; being completely at the mercy of nature is inexplicably humbling.

I was lucky. My area did not get hit badly, I didn’t lose power, my grandmother was safe, and we were alive. I counted my blessings, 100 times over. 

Others weren’t so lucky and for them my heart broke. I was consoled by the fact that New York City showed that for all the privacy we seek, we are still a city that knows solidarity and protects their neighbor.

I followed most of the storm, like many others, through TV coverage and Twitter. To say that these reporters did an amazing job covering the storm is an epic understatement. The images below all link to stories that I think covered Sandy the best they could. I also followed Anthony D. Rosa of Reuters’s twitter throughout the entire storm and afterwards. Even though he wasn’t like one of the news reporters on the ground, his insight was amazing. I especially liked that he volunteered on Saturday in SI and tweeted about what was really going on there. Unfortunately, news channels were not covering how horrific SI’s destruction is and how displaced these people feel. Rosa captured that emotion in his tweets and rallied more people to go volunteer and help.

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Listening to Katherine Vaz tonight was like being transported to a different realm.

The power she has with words and with creating scenes makes it very easy to feel as though you are a part of them. I enjoyed her reading from her new book that is soon to be published, “Below the Salt”.  A few quotes that really stuck out to me included “for every 5o notes about fright, there are 30 about joy”, “so much of love is not worrying about what happens next”, and “happiness is simply the purity of not wanting anything else.” I think these are amazing and a testament to the range of emotions she conveys through her writing, it describes her ability to showcase love in the midst of tragedy.

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White Chocolate Mocha is more chocolate than coffee (which is great for me because I’m not a fan of coffee black). The taste is sweet, the whipped cream makes the drink thick and creamy, once the drink has passed the scorching hot phase. My favorite part of this drink is that I can’t taste the brittle, strong taste of pure coffee. The wonderful, luscious taste of white chocolate mixed with whipped cream really brings out the sweetness of the drink. White Chocolate Mocha’s taste can probably only compare to the level of sweetness cupcakes explode with. Cupcakes have the perfect combination of spongy cake and sweet, intoxicating frosting.

Once a White Chocolate Mocha from Starbucks is warm and has thickened with the whipped cream, it takes you back to sitting under blankets watching Christmas movies – warm and sweet.

Penne Alla Vodka is usually my go-to dish at any Italian restaurant I am eating in for the first time. I think of it as my control experiment, I know how it tastes and therefore can attest to whether the dish I’m having is the best I’ve had or if it is lacking in anything.

La Mela, in my humble opinion, has the best Penne Alla Vodka dish ever.

They do not skimp on the pasta (as you can see in the picture above) and the sauce is rich and creamy! The atmosphere of the restaurant also adds to the experience. I went to La Mela during the summer and got to sit outside to have lunch. It’s a cute Italian ristorante in Little Italy that is run by a native Italian family.

The staff provides you with a basket of the warmest, softest bread and olive oil with balsamic vinegar. As a customer you get to munch on the bread while waiting for your antipasto or main course. Once the penne arrived I was absolutely consumed by it, barely even giving the bread a second look.

The Penne was present in abundance. I’ve eaten at different Italian restaurants or restaurants that serve Italian and the one flaw they all have is that they give you a plate with more sauce than actual pasta. For the sake of providing a visual think of the size of PAX pasta bowls, which is how most restaurants present their pasta. Now triple the PAX pasta bowl, this is a La Mela meal. 

The fact that there was a lot of pasta was my favorite part, but the overall texture and explosion of taste of the sauce really brought the pasta over the top. Many places water down the sauce too much and turn their pasta main courses into a relative of noodle soups. The Penne alla Vodka at La Mela is rich, creamy, not too salty, but with enough seasoning that you just cannot put your fork down.

The most amazing thing aside from the food, the meal is under 12 dollars.

Perks of Being a Wallflower was a lot more than I expected. The story line drew you in from the beginning and the constant flashbacks didn’t allow your mind to stray from what was happening on screen.

Emma Watson, Logan Lerman, and Ezra Miller comprise a dynamic trio that might inevitably remind you of Emma’s other two best friends, but these are way less magical and have much more angst.  With an unstable wallflower tormented by his past, a girl who only accepts “the love she thinks she deserves” even though it’s not the right kind of love, and a confident homosexual teen in the 1990s about 10-15 years ahead of his time, Perks conquers as a top film in its genre. 

Stephen Chbosky the director and writer of both the original novel and screenplay, created the epitome of a movie centered on the teenage years in ways other movies have failed. From High School Musical to The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (in all its installments) being a teenager, with teenage issues, has always been pigeon holed to just having relationship issues and constant arguments with your parents. Though, nothing less of a real teenage drama could be expected from the same group of producers that made Juno into the critically acclaimed film it is recognized as today.

Even though this has been one of Stephen’s first films to hit the big screen, the prospect of having a major media push (especially after casting Emma Watson to play Sam) didn’t intimidate the story he wanted to tell. As a viewer, you get a raw take on a teenager’s life told from Charlie’s perspective with many different personas rounding out the verdict: being a teenager is walking a tunnel on your own two feet (albeit sandwiched in between friends also making the journey) and coming out the other end stronger.

The rawness, vulnerability, and unpredictability is what makes this a great Indie drama film. 

The story is grounded on Charlie’s letters to an anonymous reader, who allows you to take a step back from the constant teen drive and look at the scene through the eyes of someone older than sixteen. Chbosky creates a platform from where you are able to both experience and analyze Charlie’s life, in a way that no other teenage drama has been able to capture. This film is more than a Freaky Friday outer body experience, it’s a look at real world problems from the eyes of a teenager whose greatest torment is being too aware of others problems.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aog8680PVmU

Finding a short film that embodied my genre of choice, Romantic Comedy, was tough because most of it was categorized under pure romance.

I hit the jackpot with “Mixtape” a Luke Snellin directed short that did a lot of things well in 3 minutes. 

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I have a love-hate relationship with romantic comedies. Some films in this genre take the fairy tale fascination the world has to a totally unrealistic place. Yet it’s also great to find a good Rom-Com with characters that make you feel and laugh!

My (newest) personal favorite is Friends With Benefits. This was the first time I saw Mila Kunis outside of her 70s show persona and she was spectacular! She impersonated the perfect Rom-Com heroine:  gutsy, hilarious, and vulnerable all in the span of 90 plus minutes. Her character paired with Justin Timberlake’s, who had relatable human faults, was perfect.

One of the many reasons I am a fan of this and other romantic comedies is that in the midst of the typical love storyline there are many real human elements. For instance in Friends with Benefits the movie includes a father-son relationship whose issues stem from Alzheimer. The fact that Justin’s character has trouble connecting the person his father was with the person without memories he is now is heartbreaking and inspiring all in one. The connection is eventually made but not without its own trying journey.

Romantic comedies also provide an incredible amount of laughs and insight. For instance, anything Jennifer Aniston is usually a rom-com and is usually funny and endearing. He’s Just Not That Into You was a great film because it played on women’s expectations of dating and how out of touch those expectations can be. It also bridged the gap between what  is a fairytale nurtured expectation and what you really want out of a relationship, i.e. Jen Aniston’s desire to get engaged in the movie.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJS-wWqVAyk

 images found on imdb